Last Tuesday, the American Gaming Association (AGA) delivered the State of the Industry Webinar, which recapped an unprecedented year for the commercial gaming industry and forecasted many developments in 2022. AGA President and CEO Bill Miller addressed the commercial gaming industry, stating, “I have to say, what a remarkable year 2021 was. Our industry stood strong despite tremendous adversity as we continued to navigate COVID and its many impacts.”
The AGA had more than words to back up that sentiment. Senior Director of Research David Forman walked through the critical points of the AGA Commercial Gaming Revenue Tracker. The total annual commercial gaming revenue in 2021 reached a staggering $53 billion, annihilating the previous record by 21%. Forman also breaks down the revenue into its various sources.
While much discussion in 2021 has centered on sports betting and iGaming, both accounted for 15% of the total annual revenue at $3.7 billion. Sports betting and iGaming are lucrative verticals, but brick-and-mortar gaming is still the backbone of the industry. This represents a massive opportunity for the commercial gaming industry. While commercial gaming revenue was up in 2021, overall U.S. travel spending was still down due to the coronavirus. However, once travel spending rises, more patrons will visit casinos.
Miller also looked forward to the coming year and discussed some key areas of focus for the commercial gaming industry in 2022. Miller listed the most salient topics for 2022 as driving responsibility in sports betting, shutting down illegal gambling, advancing gaming’s leadership on environmental, social, and governance (ESG) issues, and pushing key priorities and building champions in Washington, D.C. These issues target threats to patron safety and security along with areas for improvement.
Pavilion Payments is honored to have been a part of this historic achievement. Pavilion Payments has innovated the gaming industry by introducing revolutionary payments solutions like VIP Mobility™, the industry’s first mobile solution enabling true cashless gaming, and VIP Financial Center™, Pavilion Payments’ full-service kiosk solution. Pavilion Payments proactively improves the gaming industry by providing advanced payment options and promoting responsible gaming habits. These products played their part in the commercial gaming industry’s massive success, and we are excited to see how far we go in 2022.
Click here to learn more about how Pavilion Payments is revolutionizing payments in the gaming industry.
