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The Mid-Atlantic struggles weren’t limited to New Jersey, as Pennsylvania revealed today (Sept. 17) that brick-and-mortar gross gaming revenue (GGR) from slot machines and table games totaled $280.3 million.
Pennsylvania casino revenue for August was almost 6% lower than a year ago, when the state’s casinos won $297.7 million from their physical slots and table games. Pennsylvania’s August 2026 struggles came despite the state having one more casino last month than it did in August 2025, as Happy Valley Casino only opened in April 2026.
In Maryland, the state’s six casinos combined to win $160 million in August, representing a 6% drop from the prior year. In Virginia, casino revenue from its five casinos was $97.6 million, almost 5% lower than August 2025.
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In an interview with the Financial Times over the weekend, Done cautioned that additional tax hikes could result in widespread betting shop closures, harm related sectors such as horse racing and accelerate the decline of the high street.
Betfred currently operates approximately 1,094 retail shops across the UK. Done highlighted the concrete risks of Machine Gaming Duty – taxes on gambling machines – doubling from 20% to 40%, a move reportedly under consideration by Chancellor John Healey ahead of the Autumn Budget.
Betfred’s retail business still heavily depends on fixed-odds betting terminals (FOBTs) and in-shop gambling. Despite the maximum stake limit being cut to £2 in 2019, FOBTs account for roughly half of Betfred’s shop profits. Done emphasised that without these machines, retail betting wass “impossible”.
What is Xpander?
The Las Vegas Athletics announced a multi-year partnership with Circa Resort & Casino and Circa Sports on Thursday. The MLB franchise is set to move from Oakland ahead of the 2028 season to a new $2 billion stadium on the Las Vegas Strip.
Circa was named the club’s first Founding Partner and an Official Resort and Sportsbook of the Las Vegas Athletics and Las Vegas Athletics Ballpark.
“Derek Stevens and the Circa team have been great partners to the A’s, supporting the Club in West Sacramento during our time there, and we’re excited to build on that relationship,” said Marc Badain, president of the Athletics. “As we look toward the opening of the A’s ballpark in Las Vegas, having Circa as our first Founding Partner is an important step in bringing our vision for a uniquely Las Vegas experience to life.”
