Canada

PlayPennsylvania.com: Sportsbooks gain in March, online casinos shatter records

Published

5 years ago

April 16, 2021

Pennsylvania’s retail and online sportsbooks took in more than $560 million in wagers, as March Madness helped spur betting to the second-highest monthly volume in state history, according to PlayPennsylvania, which analyzes and researches the state’s regulated online gaming and sports betting market. Sports betting was just one piece of good news in March, as the Keystone State set a fresh record for online casino revenue while the state’s sportsbooks crossed $500 million in lifetime gross gaming revenue.

“March’s results show just how important the NCAA Tournament can be in Pennsylvania and elsewhere, giving a huge boost to sportsbooks at a time when football is dormant,” said Dustin Gouker, lead analyst for PlayPennsylvania.com. “With last year’s tournament canceled, sportsbooks were left a revenue hole that they could not fill. Pennsylvania itself was a bit of an unknown, since the last time the NCAA Tournament was held online sports betting had yet to launch. This really sets sportsbooks up for a strong rest of the year, especially in comparison with 2020.”

For the month, Pennsylvania’s online and retail sportsbooks collected $560.3 million in bets, according to official data released Thursday evening. That was up 326.6% from $131.3 million in March 2020, a month marred by the shutdown of major sports in the U.S., including the NCAA Tournament. The month represented a rebound from February’s $509.6 million handle, even as it fell short of the record $615.3 million handle in January.

Sportsbooks did well on March’s bets, too, producing $41 million in gross gaming revenue — up 376.7% from $8.6 million in March 2020. That yielded $29.4 million in taxable revenue, up 326.1% from $6.9 million a year ago. The revenue produced in March created $10 million in state taxes and $587,047 in local share assessment.

Pennsylvania sportsbooks have now generated $506.7 million in gross gaming revenue since launching, reaching yet another impressive lifetime milestone.

Pennsylvania is the first to report of the four largest sports betting markets. New Jersey should remain the top market, but Pennsylvania could feasibly pass Nevada for No. 2 in the U.S., or Pennsylvania could be passed by Illinois, which continues to gain ground.

“$500 million in gross gaming revenue is a threshold reached by only two other markets, Nevada and New Jersey, a sign of Pennsylvania’s increasingly mature market,” said Valerie Cross, analyst for PlayPennsylvania.com. “Regardless of where Pennsylvania finds itself in the state rankings, it is in an excellent position as online betting gains steam and retail sportsbooks find themselves with fewer pandemic-related restrictions.”

Online sports betting produced 91.8%, or $514.3 million, of March’s handle. The percentage is down from 92.2% of February’s handle. FanDuel Sportsbook/Valley Forge Casino topped the market again with $202.8 million in online wagering, up from $176.3 million in February. Those bets produced $10.4 million in taxable revenue, up from $7.3 million in February. DraftKings/The Meadows was second with $116.6 million in bets, up from $111.7 million in February, yielding $6 million in taxable revenue.

The Barstool-branded Penn National/Hollywood Casino app is still trying to gain ground, generating $63.6 million in March, easily No. 3 in the state but down from $65.6 million in February. That produced $3.3 million in revenue.

The leaders were followed by:

BetMGM/Hollywood Morgantown ($37.4 million handle, up from $33.7 million; $1.7 million in taxable revenue, down from $2 million)
BetRivers/Rivers-Pittsburgh ($24.8 million handle, up from $20.4 million; $1.3 million revenue, down from $1.4 million)
Parx Casino ($18.7 million handle, up from $17.7 million; $1.2 million revenue, down from $1.6 million)
Fox Bet/Mount Airy ($17.5 million handle, down from $18 million; $911,248 million revenue down from $1.3 million)
PlaySugarHouse/Rivers-Philadelphia ($17.2 million handle, up from $14.6 million; $912,183 in revenue, up/down from $957,245)
Unibet/Mohegan Sun Pocono ($10.2 million handle, up from $7.5 million; $272,627 revenue, down from $416,533)
Betfred/Wind Creek ($2.2 million handle, down from $1.7 million; -$186,870 revenue, down from $50,386)
Caesars/Harrah’s ($1.7 million handle, up from $1.1 million; $136,078 revenue, up from $3,541)
TwinSpires/Presque Isle Downs ($1.4 million handle, up from $1.3 million; -$14,229 revenue, down from $5,496)

Retail sportsbooks generated $45.9 million in handle, up from $39.8 million in February. Sportsbooks won $3.4 million on February’s bets. The top retail sportsbook was Rivers-Philadelphia with $7 million in bets, edging Parx Casino’s $6.9 million.

“The Penn National-Barstool partnership has been successful, but its gains on the market leaders has stalled,” Gouker said. “FanDuel and DraftKings have built so much brand recognition and marketing might that they still hold advantages over a brand as well-known as Barstool partnering with a Pennsylvania-based company.”

Online casinos and poker

Online casinos and poker rooms hit a fresh high in March with $97.7 million in taxable revenue, shattering the record $80.4 million set in January. Online casinos generated a per day revenue record, too, producing $3.2 million in revenue per day for the 31 days in March, which was up from the previous high of $2.8 million per day over the 28 days in February.

Year-over year, revenue is up 292.4% from $24.9 million from March 2020, a month that marks the beginning of a year-long surge that continues today. Online casino wagering has grown 275% to $3.3 billion from $871.6 million in March 2020.

“The year-over-year gains in revenue are staggering,” Cross said. “The pandemic-related shutdowns of the state’s retail casinos changed bettor behavior for the foreseeable future. This is evident as online casino gaming keeps setting records, even as brick-and-mortar restrictions are eased.”

Highlights from March:

March’s revenue yielded $22.6 million in state taxes and another $13.3 million in local share assessments and county grants.
Penn National, which includes the DraftKings, BetMGM, and Hollywood casinos, led the market with $33.6 million in revenue on $.11 billion in wagers. Rivers-Philadelphia, which includes PlaySugarHouse and BetRivers casinos, was second with $27.1 million in revenue on $668.2 million in wagers.
Mount Airy/PokerStars, the lone poker operator in the state, generated poker revenue of $2.4 million.

For more information on the revenue generated by Pennsylvania, visit www.playpennsylvania.com/revenue.

About the PlayUSA.com Network:

The PlayUSA.com Network is a leading source for news, analysis, and research related to the market for regulated online gaming in the United States. With a presence in over a dozen states, PlayUSA.com and its state-focused branches produce daily original reporting, publish in-depth research, and offer player advocacy tools related to the advancement of safe, licensed, and legal online gaming options for consumers. Based in Las Vegas, the PlayUSA Network is independently owned and operated, with no affiliations to any casino — commercial, tribal, online, or otherwise.

affiliate marketing

SEOBROTHERS’ Aleksandra Drigo flags higher barriers for affiliates in regulated Alberta

Published

9 hours ago

July 6, 2026

Wladimir P.

seobrothers’-aleksandra-drigo-flags-higher-barriers-for-affiliates-in-regulated-alberta

SEOBROTHERS Chief of Business Development Aleksandra Drigo says Alberta’s move toward a regulated online gambling market is likely to raise the cost and complexity of affiliate acquisition, reshaping competition for SEO-led publishers. Drigo shared the view in an exclusive interview with SiGMA News focused on Canada’s affiliate landscape.

Drigo said regulation can bring more transparency, but also higher compliance demands and tougher economics for smaller players. “Many affiliates, especially independent SEO players, may decide not to enter fully regulated markets and instead focus on regions with more predictable economics and lower regulatory pressure,” she said.

She added that regulated markets typically advantage well-funded affiliate groups with the ability to invest in legal and compliance support and tracking infrastructure. “Regulated markets tend to favour larger players. Big affiliate companies have the resources for legal support, compliance teams, advanced tracking infrastructure, and long-term investment without expecting fast ROI.”

On partner selection, Drigo said affiliates are increasingly weighing operators on operational quality and regulatory readiness, not just commercial terms. “We pay close attention to how consistent an operator is in terms of reporting, responsible gaming policies, speed of communication, and local regulations compliance. Reputation risks affect both sides. If an operator lacks transparency or fails to follow compliance standards, it directly impacts the affiliate business as well.”

Drigo also pointed to communication and access to performance data as major friction points in operator-affiliate relationships. “Financial disagreements can usually be resolved quickly if there is trust and clear communication between both sides. Whereas, when affiliates do not receive timely information, face unclear reporting, or get no explanation for performance changes, tensions escalate very quickly. In regulated markets, communication and transparency become just as important as the financial terms themselves.”

Looking ahead, Drigo said affiliates targeting regulated North American markets will need stronger localisation, trusted brands and more diversified traffic strategies as search behaviour changes. “With AI and online search ecosystem changes already transforming the SEO landscape, affiliates need to become much more flexible and technology-driven than before. And compliance-friendly SEO strategies and diversification beyond traditional search traffic are becoming increasingly important.”

The post SEOBROTHERS’ Aleksandra Drigo flags higher barriers for affiliates in regulated Alberta appeared first on EE Gaming | Global iGaming & Tech Intelligence Hub.

Affiliate Industry

SiGMA exclusive: Aleksandra Drigo on traffic shifts, transparency, and the future of SEO affiliates

Published

12 hours ago

July 6, 2026

GamingAmericas.com

sigma-exclusive:-aleksandra-drigo-on-traffic-shifts,-transparency,-and-the-future-of-seo-affiliates

In an exclusive interview for the SiGMA News, Aleksandra Drigo, Chief of Business Development at SEOBROTHERS, shared her perspective on the future of affiliate marketing in Canada.

She discussed how Alberta’s upcoming market launch could reshape competition, why transparency has become a cornerstone of operator-affiliate partnerships, how compliance is changing the way affiliates choose partners, and why localisation, trusted brands, and data-driven decision-making will define the next generation of SEO affiliates.

Regulation will reshape Alberta’s affiliate landscape

As Alberta prepares to regulate its online gambling market, affiliates are entering a more challenging environment. While regulation brings greater transparency, it also increases compliance demands, acquisition costs, and competition – particularly from larger, well-funded companies.

“Many affiliates, especially independent SEO players, may decide not to enter fully regulated markets and instead focus on regions with more predictable economics and lower regulatory pressure,” Aleksandra said.

Bigger brands gain the advantage

According to Drigo, regulated markets naturally favour established affiliate businesses, whereas smaller publishers face much higher barriers to entry despite niche opportunities still existing.

“Regulated markets tend to favour larger players. Big affiliate companies have the resources for legal support, compliance teams, advanced tracking infrastructure, and long-term investment without expecting fast ROI.”

Compliance is now a deciding factor

Operator selection is no longer based solely on commercial terms. Affiliates increasingly assess partners by their transparency, reporting quality, responsible gaming standards, responsiveness, and ability to meet local regulatory requirements.

“We pay close attention to how consistent an operator is in terms of reporting, responsible gaming policies, speed of communication, and local regulations compliance. Reputation risks affect both sides. If an operator lacks transparency or fails to follow compliance standards, it directly impacts the affiliate business as well.”

Communication matters more than financial disputes

Drigo believes that most partnership conflicts arise not from payment issues, but from poor communication and limited access to performance data.

“Financial disagreements can usually be resolved quickly if there is trust and clear communication between both sides. Whereas, when affiliates do not receive timely information, face unclear reporting, or get no explanation for performance changes, tensions escalate very quickly. In regulated markets, communication and transparency become just as important as the financial terms themselves.”

The future belongs to trusted brands and localisation

Looking ahead, Drigo expects meticulous localisation, brand authority, first-party audiences, and community-driven products to define success in regulated North American markets. As AI reshapes search, affiliates will need stronger technology, diversified traffic sources, and compliance-friendly SEO strategies to remain competitive.

“With AI and online search ecosystem changes already transforming the SEO landscape, affiliates need to become much more flexible and technology-driven than before. And compliance-friendly SEO strategies and diversification beyond traditional search traffic are becoming increasingly important.”

The post SiGMA exclusive: Aleksandra Drigo on traffic shifts, transparency, and the future of SEO affiliates appeared first on Americas iGaming & Sports Betting News.

Canada

St8 expands Octoplay aggregation deal to Ontario and the UK

Published

4 days ago

July 2, 2026

Wladimir P.

st8-expands-octoplay-aggregation-deal-to-ontario-and-the-uk

St8 has extended its content partnership with Octoplay into Ontario and the UK, expanding distribution of Octoplay’s casino games in two regulated markets. The companies announced the move on 2 July, 2026.

Under the expanded agreement, St8 will make Octoplay’s full portfolio available to operators in both jurisdictions through St8’s single API integration.

David Fall, Business Development Manager at St8, said:

“Expanding our partnership with Octoplay into Ontario and the UK is another important milestone as we continue to strengthen our aggregation platform with premium content from leading suppliers.

“Octoplay has built an excellent reputation for developing engaging, high-performing games, and we’re delighted to extend this collaboration into two highly strategic regulated markets. This agreement enables our operator partners to access even more quality content through a single integration while supporting their growth in competitive jurisdictions.”

Ralitsa Georgieva, CEO at Octoplay added:

“We’re pleased to expand our partnership with St8 into Ontario and the UK, making our full portfolio available to even more operators through its aggregation platform. St8 has established itself as a trusted technology partner for regulated markets, and we look forward to building on our successful collaboration together.”

The post St8 expands Octoplay aggregation deal to Ontario and the UK appeared first on EE Gaming | Global iGaming & Tech Intelligence Hub.