American Gaming Association

August 28, 2024

AGA survey: US responsible gambling efforts improving, especially for sports betting

Ahead of September's Responsible Gaming Education Month initiative, the American Gaming Association (AGA) on Wednesday (28 August) released new research showing that RG efforts are improving in the US, for both land-based casinos and sports betting.
The survey, conducted online by Kantar between 31 July and 9 August, featured responses from 2,000 nationwide voters. Its results, the AGA said, highlighted several positive developments with regards to consumer trust with the casino and sports betting industries.

Overall, 75% of respondents said that gaming “behaves responsibly in the communities where it operates”. With sports betting specifically, 90% of respondents felt it was an acceptable form of entertainment and 75% support having legal sports betting in their state of residence. Sports betting is currently legal in 38 states plus Washington, DC. No new markets have legalised wagering so far this year.

The main theme of the AGA survey was responsible gambling – 65% of over..

May 16, 2024

AGA reports record quarterly US revenue with 13th straight quarter of growth

The American Gaming Association (AGA) reported a quarterly commercial gaming revenue record of $17.7bn (£14bn/€16.3bn) in the US for Q1.

March marked the 13th consecutive quarter of growth in US gaming revenue, according to the AGA’s Commercial Gaming Revenue Tracker. The tracker provides state-by-state and cumulative insights into the US industry’s performance, utilising state revenue reports.

Revenue in March alone was $6.1bn, the US industry’s second highest grossing month ever.

Q1 saw 11 states set new quarterly revenue records for gaming. These included New York and Pennsylvania, two of the US’ largest commercial gaming markets.

A record $14.7bn was paid to state and local governments in tax contributions deriving from direct gaming tax revenue across 2023. This was up 9.7% from 2022 and doesn’t include further contributions in income, sales or other taxes.

AGA president and chief executive Bill Miller believes 2024 will prove a crucial year for the US market.

“While gaming’..

May 3, 2024

US TV sports betting ads down by a third from 2021

A Nielsen study on sports betting advertising commissioned by the American Gaming Association (AGA) has found that the volume of TV sports betting ads has declined by 33.3% since 2021.

The study looked at sports betting advertising trends from 2013 to 2023. The AGA noted that TV represents the largest category for sport betting advertisers.

Explaining the decrease in sports betting ad volume, the report posited that a change in localised marketing – as more states legalise sports betting – may be the culprit.

“Advertising by legal sportsbooks plays an important role in informing consumers about legitimate betting operators and in migrating those consumers to safe betting options,” said the AGA. “As sports betting has expanded into new states, legal operators often launch advertising campaigns to raise awareness of legal sportsbooks and capture market share. Over time, those markets mature and the level of advertising declines.”

Sports betting TV advertising units also declined 11% ..

October 17, 2023

G2E 2023: Like Covid never happened

The dog days of the pandemic feel long in the past and the gaming industry was in a bullish mood at G2E 2023, Buck Wargo writes. Despite potential economic headwinds, international expansion and high hopes for igaming mean many left Las Vegas with the sense the industry is in good health.

It was like the pandemic never happened.

The Global Gaming Expo returned to Las Vegas last week, upbeat and optimistic about igaming’s future.

The industry faces headwinds in the coming months from the US economy and a potential Culinary Union strike in Las Vegas, but attendees at the show remained positive.

G2E attracted more than 25,000 people over its four days, just shy of 2019’s record 27,000 turnout. Attendance continued to bounce back after 2020’s cancelled event and a 2021 edition that drew only 13,000 delegates.

A greater return of international visitors and exhibitors – more than 125 countries were represented – helped boost attendance numbers. There were 368 exhibitors, up from 350 a y..

April 11, 2023

US: Gaming “significantly” more diverse than workforce

A new report by the American Gaming Association (AGA) has revealed that the gaming sector is “significantly” more diverse than the US workforce as a whole.

According to the trade association, 61% of employees in the gaming sector are racial minorities compared to 52% of the broader hospitality industry and 42% of the total US workforce.

This comprises the 23% of those working in hospitality coming from Hispanic backgrounds, and the 19% who are black, both of which is above the total US workforce in general, and in line with the hospitality industry in specific. The 14% of employees who are of Asian descent means that the group is over-represented in the sector at around twice the national average.

The gaming sector is now “significantly” more diverse than both the hospitality sector and the US workforce as a whole

“Consumers, policymakers and investors are raising their expectations for all businesses on how they contribute to society beyond the bottom line,” said AGA president an..

February 16, 2023

AGA: Sports betting revenue up 73% as overall GGR hits record total

The American Gaming Association (AGA) reported that the 2022 gross gaming revenue total hit a new all-time record, with sports betting growing 72.7% year-on-year.

US commercial gaming revenue – excluding revenue taken by tribal entities – reached $60.42bn in 2022, up significantly compared to 2021’s then-record of $53.0bn.

During the year, new records were also broken for both sports betting handle and revenue, which stood at $93.2bn and $7.5bn respectively.

Read the full story on iGB North America

December 21, 2022

Industry insiders say New York Times series paints unfair picture

State lawmakers and stakeholders in the gaming industry have taken aim at the New York Times for its critical reporting on the expansion of US sports betting just as the industry met in Las Vegas to discuss best practices related to responsible and problem gaming. By Buck Wargo.

In late November, the New York Times, in a year-long investigation, outlined how the industry lobbied state officials with gifts and contributed millions in campaign donations to spur expansion after the repeal of PASPA in 2018.

The series depicted how ads on television and websites for making bets had become unavoidable and outlined the consequences to public health, taxpayers and the sports world.

The Times wrote that lawmakers gave out tax exemptions, which ultimately subsidised operators’ luring of patrons with free bets and other promotions, and found promises of tax revenue haven’t materialised.

When it comes to responsible gaming, the New York Times said the industry has been “creative in devising wa..

November 22, 2022

Industry slams NYT sports betting coverage

On Sunday, the New York Times (NYT) published an article on sports betting lobbying efforts, which has been criticised by industry trade groups and individuals as including “several mischaracterisations”.

Titled “Cigars, Booze, Money: How a Lobbying Blitz Made Sports Betting Ubiquitous”, the article makes the argument that the gambling sector “got their way with lawmakers after showering them with donations, gifts and dubious arguments”.

This assertion has been criticised by a number of US-based trade organisations, who pointed to the already stringent regulatory environment and the industry-wide commitments to responsible gaming.

Criticised by trade bodies

In a statement published on LinkedIn, the American Gaming Association (AGA) said that the NYT had made “several mischaracterisations” in the article, and emphasised that there is a high standard for obtaining gaming licences in the US.

“As unapologetic advocates for our industry, the AGA engages with the New York Times and any..

November 15, 2022

AGA: 20.5 million Americans will wager combined $1.8bn on World Cup

A survey commissioned by the American Gaming Association (AGA) has found that 8.0% of American adults – equating to 20.5 million people – plan on betting a total of $1.8bn (£1.51bn/€1.57bn) on this year’s Fifa World Cup.

The World Cup is set to take place in Qatar and will begin on 20 November.

The survey was conducted by market research company Morning Consult between 3-5 November. A national sample of 2,213 adults took part.

Read the full story on iGB North America

October 25, 2022

American Gaming Association CEO on the rebirth and renewal of US gambling

Bill Miller could argue that his tenure has seen the most transformative period for the gaming industry since the American Gaming Association was established in 1995. He talks to Robin Harrison about sports betting, gaming expansion, Covid-19, safer gambling and the illegal market in this exclusive interview.

When Bill Miller took charge of the American Gaming Association (AGA) in January 2019, the US commercial gaming industry was poised for a period of explosive growth.

Legal sports betting, thanks to the repeal of the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act (PASPA), was rapidly spreading across the US.

The industry as a whole posted its fifth consecutive year of revenue growth for that year, with 2019’s total breaking records at $43.6bn.

The industry generated $10.2bn in gaming taxes for state and local governments with 21 of 25 commercial gaming states posting year-on-year revenue growth. This sum covers annual education costs for 832,000 elementary and secondary scho..

July 14, 2022

May was second-best month ever for US commercial gaming

The American Gaming Association (AGA) has reported that US commercial gaming revenue came to $5.03bn (£4.25bn/€5.02bn) in May, the second highest month in industry history.

This was a rise of 7.9% from May 2021, in the earlier stages of recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic.

Slots continued to generate the most gross gaming revenue (GGR) overall, at $2.94bn, down just 0.1% year-on-year.

GGR from table games amounted to $873.9m, a rise of 10.5% year-on-year, while sports betting revenue came to $487.5m- up significantly by 78.2%.

Online gaming revenue also grew, by 30.9% to $406.4m.

For the year to date, total GGR is $24.39bn, up 20.6% from the same period in 2021.

Slots revenue for the year so far increased by 11% to $14.08bn and table games revenue grew by 38.2% to $4.05bn.

Sports betting revenue for the year to date jumped by 73.5% to $2.64bn. Online gaming GGR also grew significantly to $2.03bn, up by 45.6%.

The AGA also noted that March, April and May have been the three mos..

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