Virginia casinos report $84.8M in August revenue

August gaming revenues from Virginia’s three casinos totaled $84.8 million, up about $90,000 from July, according to a report released Monday by the Virginia Lottery.

The state’s newest permanent casino, Danville‘s Caesars Virginia resort, led the field with about $34.48 million in adjusted gaming revenues (wagers minus winnings). Roughly $26.53 million came from its 1,478 slots and about $7.95 million from 100 table games.

In Southwest Virginia, Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Bristol reported about $22.32 million in adjusted gaming revenues, of which $18.61 million came from its 1,384 slots and $3.72 million came from its 73 table games.

Rivers Casino Portsmouth generated $20.44 million in August from its 1,422 slots and $7.59 million from its 84 table games, for total adjusted gaming revenues of about $28.03 million.
Virginia law assesses a graduated tax on a casino’s adjusted gaming revenue. For the month of August, taxes from casino revenues totaled about $17.6 million.

Under Virginia law, 6% of a casino operator’s adjusted gaming revenue goes to its host locality until the operator passes $200 million in AGR for the year, at which point the host locality’s tax rate rises to 7%. If an operator passes $400 million in AGR in the calendar year, that rises to 8%.

For August, Portsmouth received 6% of the Rivers Casino Portsmouth’s AGR, getting roughly $1.8 million. Danville received 7% of the Caesars Virginia casino’s adjusted gaming revenue, amounting to roughly $2.41 million. For the Bristol casino, 6% of its adjusted gaming revenue — nearly $1.34 million last month — goes to the Regional Improvement Commission, which the General Assembly established to distribute Bristol casino tax funds throughout Southwest Virginia.

The Problem Gambling Treatment and Support Fund receives 0.8% of total taxes — about $140,860 last month. The Family and Children’s Trust Fund, which funds family violence prevention and treatment programs, receives 0.2% of the monthly total, which was approximately $35,215 in August.

Two more casinos are on the horizon in Virginia.

Construction began on the long-awaited $750 million Norfolk casino by development partners Boyd Gaming and the Pamunkey Indian Tribe in February. A temporary casino, dubbed The Interim Gaming Hall, is expected to open in November.

In November 2024, more than 80% of Petersburg voters approved a casino referendum. Baltimore-based The Cordish Cos. and Virginia Beach developer Bruce Smith Enterprise broke ground on the $1.4 billion casino in March.

In May, Rivers Casino and Chicago-based Rush Street Gaming announced they are planning to break ground on a $65 million hotel in Portsmouth this summer, more than two years after the casino first opened.