Detroit Casinos Bounce Back In December With $111.4M In Gaming Revenue

Written By Drew Ellis on January 9, 2024 - Last Updated on January 11, 2024
Trampoline in front of the Detroit skyline showing the logos of the three Detroit casinos bouncing over the city. Detroit casinos bounced back in December with $111.4 million in gaming revenue

Detroit casinos bounced back from the workers’ strike with its second-largest monthly gaming revenue total for 2023 in December.

The three casinos combined for $111.4 million in revenue from slots and table games last month. That is a 46.6% increase from November, which was heavily impacted by the strike.

December’s total is a slight 2.9% increase from December 2022’s $108.3 million in revenue.

With December’s numbers in, the Detroit casinos recorded $1.22 billion in revenue from slots and table games in 2023. That is just a 2.7% decline from 2022’s $1.26 billion total. If not for the strike, the three casinos likely surpass 2022’s total.

This, combined with a 2023 record for monthly retail sports betting should have the Detroit casinos feeling good about what’s to come in 2024.

All three Detroit casinos bounce back

All three Detroit casinos saw their second-best monthly revenue from slots and table games for 2023 in December.

With the casino workers’ strike ending in mid-November for both MotorCity Casino and Hollywood Casino at Greektown, as well as the beginning of December for MGM Grand Detroit, people were anxious to get back into the venues.

MGM Grand Detroit recorded $50.6 million in gaming revenue. That was second to March’s $54.4 million for the casino.

MotorCity Casino did $34.7 million in revenue. Again, just second to March of this year when it did $35.8 million.

Hollywood Casino at Greektown recorded $26.1 million in gaming revenue in December. That also was second to March, when it collected $27.6 million.

Retail sports betting hits highest handle since Jan. 2022

Retail sports betting in December also saw a big boost.

The three casinos combined for $30.4 million in handle, the highest retail handle Detroit has seen since January of 2022 ($35.9 million).

To go along with the big handle, the Detroit casinos combined for $4.8 million in sports betting revenue last month. That’s the highest mark the three Detroit casinos have had since October of 2020 ($7.6 million).

December is an encouraging number for retail sports betting in Michigan, as it was an 88.8% increase in handle compared to December of 2022 ($16.1 million).

Both MotorCity Casino ($16.8 million) and Hollywood Casino at Greektown ($10 million) saw their highest handle total of 2023. MGM Grand Detroit’s $3.6 million was just its eighth-highest total of the year.

MotorCity Casino’s $65 million in handle for the year made it the lone of the three casinos to improve on its 2022 handle ($52.9 million).

Collectively, the retail sports betting handle of $181.7 million between the three Detroit casinos was down 31.1% from last year’s $263.7 million.

Photo by PlayMichigan
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Drew Ellis

Drew Ellis is currently the Lead Writer of PlayILottery.com. He was the former Lead Writer of PlayMichigan, the No. 1 source for online gambling news in Michigan. A lifelong resident of the state, Ellis has been working in various forms of media since 1998, including more than a decade in the sports betting industry prior to transitioning into US casino markets in 2020.

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