The Maryland Lottery and the state’s casinos, sportsbooks and fantasy sports operators combined to deliver $1.637 billion in contributions to state programs and services in Fiscal Year 2026 (July 1, 2025 through June 30, 2026). The overall contribution surpassed the FY2025 figure by $48 million.
Casino gaming contributions to the State were $822.2 million; Lottery profits were $681.6 million; and sports wagering and fantasy sports contributions totaled $133.3 million. Portions of proceeds from casinos, sports wagering and fantasy sports that were directed to education programs totaled $699.8 million in FY2026. All told, the Lottery and the regulated gaming sector generated an average of $4.48 million per day for state causes during the fiscal year.
“We’re proud to operate and oversee gaming that raises critically needed state revenue,” said Maryland Lottery and Gaming Director John Martin. “We take a moment each summer after the fiscal year ends to look at the numbers, but we’ve also quickly turned our attention to the future as we aim for a strong FY2027 and beyond.”
Traditional Lottery
The Lottery had the third-best performance in its 53-year history with sales of $2.676 billion. Scratch-off ticket sales surpassed the $1 billion mark for the fifth consecutive year, totaling $1.052 billion.
Profit returned to the state from the sale of Lottery tickets totaled $681.6 million, including $532.5 million directed to the General Fund, which provides resources for a variety of programs and services, including public schools. The State’s budget allocated more than $149 million in Lottery profit across multiple state funds that support various causes, including public transit initiatives, the Maryland Veterans Trust Fund and improvements to the Camden Yards Sports Complex.
Lottery players won $1.692 billion in prizes during FY2026, an average of $4.6 million per day. Players won 1,659 prizes of $10,000 or more during the fiscal year, including 542 winning tickets that paid prizes of at least $50,000 and 28 prizes of at least $1 million. Retailer sales and cashing commissions totaled $199.5 million, an average of more than $47,000 per retailer. As of the end of FY2026, the Lottery had 4,229 retail locations across the state.
Casino Gaming
Maryland’s six casinos generated $1.931 billion in revenue from slot machines and table games, the fifth-best single-year total in the 16-year history of the state’s casino program.
The casinos contributed $822.2 million to the state in FY2026, including $599.1 million to the Education Trust Fund (ETF), which supports early childhood education, public elementary and secondary education, public school construction and capital improvement projects. Cumulatively, since the opening of the state’s first casino in September 2010, more than $7 billion in casino gaming revenue has been directed to the ETF.
FY2026 casino contributions also went to the following beneficiaries:
Local aid: $103.4 million in support for the communities where the casinos are located, including contributions to local impact grants and aid to local jurisdictions
Maryland’s horse racing industry: $94.7 million, including contributions to the Racetrack Facility Renewal and Horse Racing Purse Dedication accounts
Maryland’s Small, Minority and Women-owned Business Fund: $20.3 million
Responsible gaming programs: $4.4 million in per-machine and per-table-game assessments paid by casino operators to the Problem Gambling Fund
Sports Wagering and Fantasy Competitions
Maryland’s sports wagering market continued to grow in FY2026, delivering $132.3 million to the state compared to $88.9 million in FY2025.
Retail sports wagering operators pay 15% of their taxable proceeds to the Blueprint For Maryland’s Future Fund which supports public education programs. Mobile sports wagering operators pay 15% of their taxable proceeds to the Blueprint Fund and 5% to the General Fund. In FY2026, sports wagering directed $99.7 million to the Blueprint Fund and $32.6 million to the General Fund.
The operators of fantasy competitions (including fantasy sports) also contribute 15% of their proceeds to the Blueprint Fund, totaling $1,029, 319 in FY2026.
Responsible Gambling
Contributions to the State’s Problem Gambling Fund totaled $5.4 million in FY2026. Casino operators pay annual assessments of $425 per slot machine and $500 per table game, accounting for $4.4 million; and expired sports wagering prizes are also directed to the Problem Gambling Fund, totaling another $1 million. These funds help to support no-cost counseling services for Maryland residents, which are available by calling 1-800-GAMBLER or visiting mdgamblinghelp.org.
