Indiana Casino Revenue Up 9.9% Year-on-Year in August

Indiana is one of many states that has access to our best sports betting sites but remains without a real-money online casino market. But that hasn't stopped some good news rolling in on the casino front.

The latest data from the Indiana Gaming Commission has revealed that the state’s thirteen land-based casinos combined for nearly $200.2 million in adjusted gross revenue (AGR) in August, a 9.9% year-on-year rise from last year.

Casino AGR was up from July, representing a 4.2% month-on-month increase. July 2024 saw $192.1 million in AGR, with Hard Rock Casino Northern Indiana leading with $36.1 million. Still, July’s AGR represented the lowest figure in five months. 

Slot games resulted in a $177.5 million win for the casinos in August, while table games generated $37.5 million.

The rankings

As the largest casino in the Indianapolis area, Hard Rock Casino Northern Indiana also took the top spot this month, collecting almost $36.6 million in AGR. Like the other casinos in Northern Indiana, Hard Rock sees many visitors from the greater Chicago area, as well as gamblers from Indianapolis and Louisville, Kentucky.

Horseshoe Indianapolis came in second, generating $25.2 million. In third place, Caesars Southern Indiana saw nearly $21.8 million in AGR. Harrah’s Hoosier Park, Horseshoe Hammond, and Ameristar Casino took fourth, fifth, and sixth, respectively.

With $13.1 million in AGR, Bally’s Evansville came in seventh. This comes after the casino won the “Best Casino” award from Casino Player Magazine’s 2024 Best of Gaming Awards last month.

Hollywood Lawrenceburg, Terre Haute Casino, and Blue Chip Casino followed. The remaining three casinos, Belterra Casino, French Lick Resort, and Rising Star Casino, generated AGRs below $10 million.

Notably, Hard Rock Casino Northern Indiana was the state’s only casino to post year-on-year gains in AGR in July. Beltarra Casino saw the most significant decline compared to July 2023, reporting a decrease of 22%.

Solid month for sportsbooks

Indiana sports betting also reported growth last month, with a 36.3% increase in AGR, from $23.5 million last August to almost $32.1 million. This AGR resulted from a $307.9 million handle, up 29.3% year-on-year.

Ameristar Casino led with a handle of $112.3 million, including $111.5 million from its online DraftKings Sportsbook. Blue Chip Casino came in second place with a $93.3 million handle, with the FanDuel online sportsbook accounting for almost $93.1 million of this. Belterra Casino generated the third highest sports wagering handle, at $30.9 million, including $30.8 million from its BetMGM Sportsbook.

A pretty good August for Indiana sports betting apps, but not unsurprising given the excellent Indiana sportsbook promos.

Indiana’s gaming landscape

The Indiana Riverboat Gaming Act was passed in July 1993, following which the first ten riverboat casinos opened in 1995. In 2007, new legislation allowed the state’s two racetracks, Hoosier Park and Indiana Downs, to install up to 2,000 slot machines each.

In 2015, further amendments meant that casinos could move to land-based facilities, with Bally’s Evansville, then known as Tropicana Evansville, being the first to take advantage of the change.

Today, Indiana’s casinos serve metropolitan areas in three states, including Indiana (Indianapolis), Kentucky (Louisville), and Illinois (Chicago). 

While the state has yet to join the seven iGaming states in legalizing online casinos, Indiana offers online sports betting, officially launched in October 2019.