Detroit Casinos Generate $101.5 Million Revenue in June Despite Sportsbook Losses

The three Detroit casinos had a dreadful roller coaster of a month in June as both retail casinos and sportsbooks combined for a revenue of $101.5 million. Not only was this revenue the lowest recorded in Detroit this year, but it was also the first-time sportsbooks ended a month in the red throughout 2023.

Interestingly, if Detroit retail sportsbooks did not have a negative, the month’s revenue would still have ended up as the lowest generated since November 2022. The statement by the Michigan Gaming Control Board revealed that slots and table games contributed $101.9 million to June’s revenue.

Detroit sportsbooks combined for a total sports betting handle of $8.1 million in June. However, these massive wagering numbers could only translate to a loss of $378,641 when gross receipts were calculated. A single bet placed on MotorCity Casino triggered negative returns in the month as the retail casino paid out $972,000 to a customer on June 18.

The butterfly effect of this winning bet was that MotorCity’s retail sportsbook had a $708,625 loss in the month, affecting the city’s financials. Retail casino receipts could only help little as the total adjusted revenue for MotorCity came to $32.4 million, as against a possible $33.2 million or more.

Other retail sportsbooks pooled strongly to cover up the deficit created by MotorCity, the retail sportsbooks operated by FanDuel Michigan. MGM Grand Detroit, for example, generated $30,010 while Hollywood Casino at Greektown proved to be Detroit’s largest earner with sports betting receipts worth $283,009.

All three casinos paid $11,832 in wagering taxes to local authorities while $14,462 was sent to Detroit city officials. Compared to June 2022, sports betting handle saw a decrease of 63% while gross adjusted receipts were down $844,308 year-over-year. Sports betting revenue also decreased by $1.3 million relative to May 2023.

Despite the setback on the sports betting front, MGM Grand Detroit managed to pull its weight as Detroit’s leading retail casino in June 2023. The brand took almost half of the market share in June, generating $47.0 million in casino revenue. However, a market share of 46% did not stop the BetMGM-owned retail brand from experiencing a 2.7% year-over-year decrease in its adjusted casino receipts.

Overall, slots and table games generated $101.9 million in the month of June, indicating a 3.8% increase from June 2022. For the year to date (June 30), receipts from slots and table games improved by 0.9% compared to the same period in 2022. Unfortunately, MotorCity would add to its sports betting woes as gaming revenue tanked by 3.0% to $32.5 million.

On the flip side, Hollywood Casino at Greektown was Detroit’s highest gainer on the gaming front, with a revenue of $22.4 million, indicating a 36.8% growth. All three casinos paid a total of $8.3 million in state taxes in June. This figure was a notch higher compared to the $8.0 million worth of taxes paid in the same month in 2022. To the city of Detroit, however, the wagering taxes for all three retail casinos came to $12.1 million.

A core aspect of Michigan gambling is the fantasy contest, and it had a flying start this year. Fantasy contests in May generated $1.9 million and resulted in taxes of $155,539 to the state. From a year-to-date perspective, fantasy contests reported adjusted revenues of $10.8 million and paid $903,369 worth of taxes.

Considering that Detroit contributes significantly to aggregate Michigan revenues, expectations that total gambling revenues in the state would continue its positive trend are low. Nevertheless, Michigan online gambling has had a better outing than its retail counterpart, so there may yet be a chance that the state records another monthly revenue north of $150 million.

The Michigan Gaming Control Board is also making increasing efforts to curb illegal gambling and promote responsible gaming practices. And with most of the efforts starting to result in arrests and seizures, there is a good chance that the revenues may be directed to legal gambling channels.