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Ohio’s four casinos combined to report more than $94.7 million in taxable revenue in March, according to the recently released Ohio Casino Control Commission’s (OCCC) March report.
The figure represents a 13.4% increase from Ohio’s February 2024 gaming revenue of $83.5 million and is a 1.4% annual rise. The revenue comes from slots and table games and doesn’t include in-person sports bets.
Ohio online casinos have not been legalized, but some progress has recently been made. Ohio lawmakers met to discuss the possibilities of legalizing online casinos.
They discussed the state’s interest in the activity and the already legalized and thriving market in several neighboring states — Michigan, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia.
All four Ohio casinos showed monthly revenue increases in March
The OCCC March 2024 revenue report revealed that, of the total $94.7 million in taxable revenue, slot revenue was $69.0 million, whereas $25.7 million came from table games.
Looking at retail locations individually, Hollywood Columbus showed the biggest monthly progress. To be more specific, here’s how March numbers compare to February results:
- Hollywood Columbus: $25.6 million in revenue shows a 13.3% monthly growth
- Jack Cleveland Casino revenue of $24.5 million is a 13.3% monthly rise
- Hollywood Toledo won $22.5 million, a 16.8% monthly increase
- Hard Rock Cincinnati’s revenue of $22.2 million is up 10.5% from February
At the same time, here’s how March 2024 results changed from last year:
- Hollywood Toledo revealed an 8.2% annual rise
- Hollywood Columbus showed a 5.1% annual rise
- Jack Cleveland Casino saw a 0.4% annual increase
- Hard Rock Cincinnati reported a nearly 7.5% annual drop
Hard Rock Cincinnati is the only place showing a year-over-year decline in March; in February, it was Jack Cleveland.
Ohio lawmakers meet to discuss possibility of legal online casino
Ohio lawmakers have recently considered the prospect of online casino legalization.
In the first four scheduled meetings, the newly formed Study Commission on the Future of Gaming in Ohio discussed online casinos. The next meeting will address iLottery, racinos/charitable gaming, sports betting, and daily fantasy sports.
One of the reasons Ohio should legalize online casinos is that regulating the activity could help problem gamblers.
Furthermore, as online casino advocates stated, Ohio could generate between $205 million and $410 million annually in new tax revenue.
It will be hard for Ohio lawmakers to ignore the state revenue generated by Michigan’s and Pennsylvania’s online casinos, the top two states for iGaming. These states are collecting millions of dollars in tax revenue. This could motivate a state to legalize the activity or at least consider the matter in 2025.
PlayUSA continues to follow the progress and expansion of iGaming in Ohio and other states through our online casino bill tracker.
