After four straight months of falling revenue, Maryland’s casinos nearly stood still in September, and for the industry, standing still counts as good news.
The state’s six casinos took in $151,414,275 in slot machine and table game revenue, down just $121,333, or 0.1%, from September 2025, the Maryland Lottery and Gaming reported Oct. 5. That is the mildest year-over-year change since the slide began. Revenue fell 3.7% in May, 2.4% in June, 4.7% in July and 6% in August, the Chronicle reported.
Who gained, who slipped
The results varied by casino:
Casino Sept. 2026 Change vs. Sept. 2025 MGM National Harbor $63,889,344 +1.1% Live! Casino & Hotel $54,151,966 -1.4% Horseshoe Casino Baltimore $13,057,478 -6.8% Ocean Downs Casino $8,926,984 +6.0% Hollywood Casino Perryville $6,749,943 +6.3% Rocky Gap Casino Resort $4,638,560 -0.2%
MGM National Harbor in Prince George’s County posted growth after leading the slide at the start of the fiscal year, when it fell 12.2% in July. MGM and Live! together produced about 78% of the month’s revenue. Horseshoe was the weakest, down $947,510 from last September. Ocean Downs and Perryville posted the biggest gains.
What the state collected
Casino gaming contributions to the state totaled $65,033,471, an increase of 1.8% from September 2025, according to the state report. Of that, $47,639,745 went to the Education Trust Fund, about $8.1 million to local communities, $7.6 million to the horse racing industry and $1.6 million to small, minority and women-owned businesses. The state’s worksheet notes its dollar totals include additional contributions from expired lottery tickets because of changes to state law, so the dollar amounts can differ from the statutory percentages.
The casino money matters for the long run. Across fiscal 2026, casinos sent about $822.2 million to state programs on $1.931 billion in revenue, and the Education Trust Fund has received more than $7 billion since 2010.
One month is not a trend
A 0.1% decline is still a decline, and September’s total is the fifth monthly dip in a row. This is a mature, land-based market, and analysts have pointed to neighboring states’ expanding casino markets and the failure of Maryland lawmakers to legalize online casino gaming. September may signal a floor, or it may be a good month. October’s report, due early November, will help show which.
Southern Maryland has no casino, but it is next to two of the busiest. MGM National Harbor is in Prince George’s County, and the state’s education fund supports school programs statewide.
