Michigan Casino Revenue Passes $114 Million in May

The three commercial casinos in the state of Michigan generated revenue of $112.7 million in May, a rise of 3% on the April figures, while retail sports betting rolled in $1.3 million to give a combined revenue of $114 million. 

The Michigan Gaming Control Board’s monthly report shows that the combined revenue across its three land-based casinos was up 1.2% on the return for May 2024. 

The sector is also on track to reach its 2024 annual revenue figure of $1.29 billion, having recorded a total of $593.3 million during the first five months of the calendar year. While that will be an encouraging result for casino operators, it is still some distance short of the record $1.45 billion annual revenue for 2019, before the COVID-19 pandemic struck. Bettors also have access to some of the top real-money online casinos.

While annual revenue passed the $1.3 billion mark every year from 2005 to 2019, it has not achieved that milestone since.

MGM Grand tops the table

The three commercial casinos in the state are based in Detroit, of which the biggest revenue generator is the MGM Grand Detroit, located in the Downtown area. 

The MGM Grand accounted for 47% of total revenue in May, reporting a return of $53.1 million, up 2.4% year-on-year. MotorCity Casino, in the North Corktown neighborhood, also increased its revenue from last year’s figure, up 0.6%, with revenue rising to $33.9 million. 

In contrast, Hollywood Casino at Greektown was the only casino to report a year-on-year revenue decline in May, with $25.7 million generated last month, which showed a 0.2% decline. 

Michigan sports betting slump

Although casino gaming continued to be a strong revenue generator, the May figures showed a significant fall in Michigan sports betting earnings. All three casinos provide retail sports betting, but their combined return shows a 36.1% drop from last year’s numbers. 

The most disappointing result was from MGM Grand Detroit, which sustained an 86.1% revenue fall year-on-year, reporting sports betting revenue of just $72,060. 

Retail sports betting as a segment, however, represented just 1.1% of overall gambling revenue in May and don't include figures from Michigan sports betting apps.

Push Gaming gives Michigan a vote of confidence

At the same time as the commercial casino sector has continued to perform well, game developer Push Gaming has given a vote of confidence to the Michigan online casino market, choosing the state to be the location of its entry into the US market, through a deal with BetMGM. 

The partnership means that BetMGM players can play many of the Push Gaming range of slot and casino games, as well as Michigan-tailored games. 

“We are incredibly excited to be live in the US, and Michigan is the perfect place to start. It is a hugely important and vibrant market, and we are proud to launch exclusively with BetMGM,” said the COO at Push Gaming, Andy Bentley.