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October brought PENN Entertainment its strongest year-over-year gaming revenue growth in Pennsylvania for 2026, according to CEO Jay Snowden. He suggested the state’s crackdown on unlicensed skill games helped bring more players to its casinos.
During PENN’s Nov. 5 earnings call, Snowden said the increase was
“largely fueled by the back half of the month.”
That period followed the Oct. 14 start of enforcement. He did not disclose a revenue total or growth percentage for its Pennsylvania casinos.
PENN sees signs of skill game players moving to casinos
Snowden said most of October’s growth came from the unrated segment. Unrated play is not tracked through a casino loyalty account.
He described customers who either had a previous relationship with PENN or had never been in its database. Snowden viewed that pattern as a sign that people who played skill games were turning to regulated casinos.
PENN operates four Hollywood Casino properties in Pennsylvania:
- Hollywood Casino at Penn National Race Course
- Hollywood Casino at The Meadows
- Hollywood Casino York
- Hollywood Casino Morgantown
PENN had opposed the machines and anticipated a potential benefit from their removal before the court ruling. During its April earnings call, Snowden repeatedly called skill games illegal and said a decision against them could help PENN’s retail business. The size of that benefit was difficult to measure at the time.
Snowden welcomed the shutdowns but was cautious about predicting how long PENN’s gains would last. He said he did not know whether October’s growth would continue into future months and pointed to uncertainty about legislative developments.
Court ruling led to October skill game enforcement
The crackdown followed a June 15 Pennsylvania Supreme Court ruling that classified skill games as slot machines under the state’s Gaming Act. The machines had been widely available in bars, restaurants, convenience stores, gas stations, and social clubs.
At the time of the ruling, the state attorney general’s office estimated that about 70,000 skill game machines were operating across Pennsylvania.
Manufacturers had argued that the devices required an element of player skill. The attorney general’s office argued that including a skill component did not exempt them from Pennsylvania gambling laws.
The court stayed its ruling for 120 days. Businesses had until Oct. 13 to comply. Enforcement began the following day. Unauthorized machines then became subject to seizure. Establishments continuing to possess or operate them also risked criminal charges.
Pennsylvania State Police allowed some distributors to remove machines on an agreed schedule. The devices had to be inoperable beginning Oct. 14.
Police announced agreements with six operators or distributors on the first day of enforcement and said agreements with additional distributors were pending. Under those arrangements, police could delay seizures while distributors completed removals within their approved timelines.
A machine still inside a local business may have been disabled while awaiting removal.
Licensed casinos and truck stop games remain options
Pennsylvania’s retail casinos remain licensed locations for slot play. Qualifying licensed truck stops can offer video gaming terminals. Those terminals fall under the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board’s oversight.
State police say the PGCB must inspect and approve machines at licensed locations. Both the location and the equipment need authorization. Operating a truck stop or holding a liquor license does not, by itself, authorize a business to offer gambling machines.
The court ruling therefore does not eliminate legal machine gambling outside casinos. It leaves the existing licensed truck stop VGT system in place. Unauthorized skill games at other businesses remain subject to enforcement.
