Maryland’s six casinos opened the new fiscal year with a step back, generating $157.9 million in combined gaming revenue during July, a 4.7 percent decline from the same month last year, according to figures released by Maryland Lottery and Gaming.
The state’s casinos combined for $157,864,080 in slot machine and table game revenue in July 2026, down $7,797,814 from July 2025. Casino gaming contributions to the state totaled $68,183,830, down 3.5 percent year-over-year, including $49,887,124 that went to the Education Trust Fund. The remaining state contributions included $8.4 million distributed to the communities and jurisdictions hosting each casino, $8 million supporting Maryland’s horse racing industry, and $1.7 million earmarked for small, minority- and women-owned businesses.
MGM National Harbor in Prince George’s County led the decline, posting $60,205,298 in July revenue, down $8,382,041, or 12.2 percent, from July 2025 — the steepest single-month drop among any Maryland casino this fiscal year and a sharp reversal from earlier in 2026, when MGM was frequently the lone property posting year-over-year gains. Live! Casino & Hotel in Anne Arundel County followed with $59,227,515, down a more modest 0.8 percent, keeping the two largest properties within roughly $1 million of each other for the month.
Four smaller casinos posted gains even as the state’s two largest venues struggled. Horseshoe Casino Baltimore generated $15,063,913, up 4.5 percent; Ocean Downs Casino in Worcester County brought in $10,476,145, up 2.3 percent; Hollywood Casino Perryville in Cecil County reported $7,833,393, up 2.8 percent; and Rocky Gap Casino Resort in Allegany County recorded $5,057,816, down a slight 0.8 percent.
MGM National Harbor’s decline stands out against a broader industry backdrop that has grown more competitive for Maryland in recent months. Industry analysts have noted that Maryland remains a mature, land-based gaming market without legal online casino gambling, even as neighboring states lean on digital play for growth — Pennsylvania and New Jersey have posted stronger gains from online gaming, while Virginia continues to benefit from new casino openings that draw some regional gamblers away from Maryland properties. MGM National Harbor sits just across the Woodrow Wilson Bridge from Virginia, putting it in more direct competition with that state’s expanding casino market than any other Maryland property.
The July results mark the first monthly report of Fiscal Year 2027, which runs from July 2026 through June 2027. They follow a Fiscal Year 2026 that closed with total gaming revenue of roughly $1.93 billion, down 1.7 percent from the prior year, suggesting the modest year-over-year declines that characterized much of last fiscal year have carried into the new one, at least for July.
For Southern Maryland, the casino revenue reports carry more than passing relevance. MGM National Harbor sits just across the Potomac from Charles County and draws heavily from Charles, St. Mary’s and Calvert county residents for gaming, dining and entertainment, making its monthly performance more directly tied to the region than that of casinos farther north or east. The Education Trust Fund dollars generated statewide also flow back into public schools across all 24 Maryland jurisdictions, including the three Southern Maryland counties, helping fund classroom resources, teacher salaries and student programs alongside the state’s other education funding streams.
Detailed casino-by-casino revenue and contribution breakdowns for July 2026 are available in worksheets posted on the Maryland Lottery and Gaming website. The agency also reiterated its standard responsible-gambling notice, encouraging Marylanders who need confidential help with a gambling problem to call 1-800-GAMBLER or visit mdgamblinghelp.org, both offered at no cost.
