Casinos in the USA: fewer visitors, more spending per player in 2025
Even though fewer people are attending casinos in the United States, the numbers show that the sector remains strong as always. Revenues remain stable because players have been spending more during their visits.
According to a report by Jefferies Equity Research in August 2025, North American casinos recorded a 5.4% drop in the number of visitors compared to the same month of the previous year. This figure is part of a trend of reduced traffic that has existed since before the pandemic. In August 2025, visitation was 17.5% below the levels of August 2019. Despite this, a less severe drop was recorded in July of around 10.1% compared to July of the previous year and is seen as an exception by analysts.
Maintained revenues
Although fewer people are attending casinos, gross gaming revenue has not suffered any change. The main reason is that those who go to the casino are spending more per visit. Jefferies also highlighted in the report some operational improvements that help to offset the lower visitation.
As we can see, the sector is going through a post-pandemic adjustment phase where the volume of visitors has not yet fully returned to how it was before, but other factors maintain profitability.
But not all markets are behaving in the same way. Some states have surpassed pre-Covid visitation levels. Others are trying to avoid the damage of sharp declines in their numbers. See a summary of the main cases in the USA:
- Pennsylvania: recorded in August 2025, gaming revenue of US$582.3 million, the second-highest monthly figure in the state’s history. Compared to August 2019, traffic/visitation in the state was 18.8% above that pre-pandemic level.
- Illinois: Illinois suffered major declines compared to August 2019. The state was around 19.6% below pre-pandemic visitation levels.
- Atlantic City / New Jersey: visitation is about 20.7% below August 2019 levels.
- Black Hawk, Colorado: The city of Black Hawk recorded an increase of approximately 5% in traffic/visitation in August compared to the previous year. Part of this growth is attributed to the opening of the Monarch Casino Resorts property in 2022.
Analyst David Katz from Jefferies comments that regional casinos tend to be in a more favourable position for short-term growth than Las Vegas, mainly because traffic on the Strip remains modest until some acceleration happens at the end of 2025.
Among the companies that seem to be better prepared for this scenario are the main ones:
- Penn Entertainment with refurbishments in Illinois and Ohio.
- Churchill Downs expansion with new properties in Kentucky, Virginia and New Hampshire.
General scenario and prospects
The casino sector today lives something like a “new normal” post-Covid. Visitation is below 2019 levels in many markets. However, revenues are being sustained through changes in player behaviour, with them spending more, and through new developments and refurbishments.
Las Vegas, which usually serves as a benchmark, is being unfavourably compared with regional markets, which in many cases are performing better and even recovering more quickly. For Las Vegas, some acceleration is expected only at the end of 2025, according to Katz, linked to the movements group slate of events, increased tourism, and possibly promotions that encourage the return of visitors.
Although there is reason for concern about the decline in visitation to casinos in the United States, the most recent data indicate that the sector is not in a catastrophic state. Revenues remain relatively strong, supported by strategic changes by operators who invest in refurbishments, new properties, and in attracting audiences more willing to spend more per visit.
This article was first published in Portuguese on 22 September 2025.
Sign up HERE to receive SiGMA’s Top 10 News and SiGMA’s Weekly Newsletter to stay up to date with the latest iGaming news from the world’s largest iGaming community and enjoy exclusive subscriber offers.
