Gambling revenue in Nevada increased 8.5% year-on-year to $1.34bn (£1.07bn/€1.25bn) in February, driven by growth within the baccarat segment.
Revenue was clear of $1.24bn in February last year. It was also 4.7% higher than $1.28bn in January this year – the strongest opening month to a calendar year in Nevada history.
Slots drew the most revenue at $827.6m for the month, an increase of 0.6% from 2023. Of this total, $536.6m came from multi-denomination slot games and $207.6m penny slot machines.
However, only multi-denomination slot games reported growth in February. Revenue was lower across all other game types within this segment.
Baccarat was the highest area of growth during February. Revenue here was 75.5% higher at $180.1m. Blackjack revenue was also up 15.6% to $132.5m with craps revenue rising 22.0% to $44.7m.
Other areas of growth include Ultimate Texas Hold’em, where revenue edged up 4.4% to $18.0m, and pai gow poker 4.7% to $10.4m.
Sportsbook revenue rises as Nevada hosts Super Bowl
February also saw Nevada host this year’s Super Bowl. The NFL end-of-season showpiece took place at the Allegiant Stadium, with the Kansas City Chiefs running out 25-22 winners against the San Francisco 49ers.
Perhaps unsurprisingly, Nevada reported a 16.0% rise in sports pool revenue in February to $47.9m. Notably, however, American football only accounted for $12.0m of this.
This biggest money-making sport for operators was basketball, with revenue hitting $24.7m. A further $4.3m came from hockey betting and $7.7m other sports, although baseball betting generated a $929,000 loss. It was also noted that $23.8m of all sports pool revenue came from mobile wagering.
Strip revenue tops $800.0m in February
As for the Las Vegas Strip, revenue in February amounted to $800.7m, up 12.4% on a year-on-year basis.
Slots revenue for the month hit $381.0m, down 2.4%. As was the case on a state-wide level, multi-denomination slots were the only area to report growth, with revenue down across all other games types.
In contrast, table, counter and card games revenue climbed 30.3% to $419.7m. Highlights here included an 81.9% rise in baccarat revenue to $180.5m and a 20.8% hike in blackjack revenue to $107.8m. As for sports pool revenue, this was 9.9% higher at $24.7m in February.