West Virginia Gamblers Prefer Ohio and Pennsylvania Casinos

According to the results of the American Gaming Association’s (AGA) annual casino survey, gambling revenue shot up by 5 percent, becoming $37.3 billion last year. AGA President Frank Fahrenkopf said that the US casino industry is growing, which is good for players, casino employees, as well as the communities in which they live.

However, Pennsylvania and Ohio casinos are making a profit only because West Virginia players prefer playing at Ohio and Pennsylvania casinos instead of the casinos in their own state. West Virginia’s Mountaineer Casino reported a fall in revenue of 15.8 percent during Q3 of 2012 when compared to the corresponding period in 2011. But MTR Gaming Group, which owns Mountaineer Casino along with a few new casinos in Pennsylvania and Ohio, reported a 12.2 percent increase in revenue.

Wheeling Track, which once used to run profitable table games, is now running under a loss. Reportedly, the casino lost around $1 million running table games such as blackjack, roulette, and craps this year.

West Virginia casinos and gambling facilities are losing their customers to newer and better gambling facilities in Pennsylvania, which has over 500 commercial casinos. Gambling revenue has risen in Maine, Maryland, Kansas, and New York too because they established newer casinos last year.

This blog entry was posted on Tuesday, May 28th, 2013 at 9:32 pm and is filed under Blackjack News, Casino News.