Last year, PokerStars enjoyed one of the best Decembers yet. The online poker operator managed to generate an impressive $685,575, the highest revenue that the brand had generated since May. This number was a considerable boost in the November revenue, which saw the revenue from regulated online poker rooms drop to $2.2 million, a drop of almost 10%.
November was PokerStars’s lowest revenue month since February 2020, when the brand only managed $1.8 million. Traditionally, November has always been a down month for online poker, however, tides tend to change in December, before revenues pick up again and peak in January.
All 3 online poker networks recorded a month-to-month slump in their revenue numbers. However, operators on the Borgata license, namely, PartyPoker, BetMGM, and Borgata experienced the biggest blow in their revenue. In November, the Borgata trio saw their income drop by more than 20% from October, which created an opening for WSOP to take first place.
Before WSOP swooped in to lead the revenue table, Borgata had maintained that position for 2 months. WSOP, which operates on the Caesars license, generated poker returns of $854,000 in November, a decline of 2.4% from October’s $875,000. PokerStars, on the other hand, which operates on the Resorts’ licensee, had $607k of revenue, down 2.7% month-to-month ($624k).
In November, Borgata’s licensees, that is PartyCasino, Pala, Borgata, BetMGM, as well as Partycasino, produced a revenue of $33 million in revenue, a decline of 12.9% from October’s $37.9 million. However, it is worth noting the $33 million was a striking increase of 45.2% year-to-year.
PokerStars’ competitors, namely the Golden Nugget — which covers FanDuel, PlaySugarHouse, and more generated combined revenue of $31.8 million in November, which was a drop of 7.9%. Licensees of the Resorts, which consist of DraftKings, Barstool, and of course PokerStars managed to generate $27.2 million in income, a decline of 5% from October’s $28.7 million).
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Improvements in December all round
December has always been one of the busiest months for online poker operators. However, of the 3 online poker rooms that are live in the Garden State, PokerStars realized the lowest year-over-year slump. This combined with its performance in November has allowed the brand to inch closer and closer to its fiercest competitors, WSOP and BetMGM.
Even though PokerStars dominates the markets in Michigan and Pennsylvania, the brand has not experienced as much success as it has in Garden State. PokerStars’ performance in New Jersey has been disappointing for a while, ever since the advent of the 2019 pandemic. Like many operators in 2019, PokerStars experienced a significant increase in revenue as well as registered accounts when the world was in a mandated lockdown.
PokerStars’ New Jersey competitors WSOP and BetMGM, on the other hand, experienced a lesser decline owing to its popular online bracelet series. Since then, PokerStars has struggled to maintain a lead. The good news though is that its performance has been steady all through the year.
WSOP had managed to take up the top spot in July, as a result of its online series. However, MGM experienced an inexplicable boost in revenue in September, which allowed it to grab the top spot in New Jersey for the very first time since the 3 live operators started operating in the Atlantic City region. Both WSOP and BetMGM have experienced steep declines but PokerStars’ performance has been more consistent, which has allowed the brand to cement itself among online poker lovers in the state. Indeed, PokerStars’ market share is almost at 30% as a result.
PokerStars’ winter series should give the brand a boost
In January, PokerStars’s revenue received the boost it needed from the Winter Series, which kicked off on December 25th before concluding on January 12th. The Winter Series consisted of 291 events with guaranteed prize pools of $50 million. The Winter Series was designed to appeal to players with all financial capabilities from low, middle, as well as high rollers.
The winter series was held concurrently in the 3 states in which PokerStars operates namely Michigan, New Jersey, as well as Pennsylvania. Over the course of 10 days, participants battled it out to walk away with an excess of $2 million in combined guaranteed prize money. Of the 3 states, Pennsylvania led the pack, offering $1 million in prize money.
Michigan punters, on the other hand, battled it out for $650,000 and $500,000 in the Garden State. The 3 states hosted more than 40 events which concluded with a 2 day Main Event in every state. Pennsylvania offered the largest guarantee of $150,000 during the Main Event while New Jersey and Michigan each offered $75,000 and $100,000 respectively.
Other than the star attractions of the Winter Series, the event also featured several smaller tournaments throughout the series that included marathons, Sunday Special Winter Editions, Daily $10 Freezeouts, Mixed Games, as well as high rollers, which targeted players capable of handling hefty buy-ins of $500 and upwards.
The schedule also included a wide range of formats such as deepstacks, knockouts, 4 max turbos and so much more. Punters in Pennsylvania were also treated to a mini-series that was dubbed the Winter Hybrid, which was concluded on 29th January. This event featured affordable buy-ins of as little as $10.
While the Winter Series had been held in Pennsylvania and New Jersey before, this was the first time that punters in Michigan were able to participate in the series. PokerStars only debuted in Michigan at the tail end of January 2o20.
Rather than host the Winter Series first in Michigan, PokerStars opted to go with the MICOOP as Michigan’s first-ever tournament series on February 20th, 2020. At the time, PokerStars was the only regulated online room in the state.
Final Thoughts
Even though PokerStars is facing a lot of competition in New Jersey, its strong and vibrant presence in Pennsylvania and Michigan has helped the brand weather the storm. If the brand keeps up with its consistent performance, there is no reason why PokerStars should not be at the top of the revenue table come mid-year.
