Philippine Gaming Revenue Falls 11.4% in Q3 as E-Games Slump, PAGCOR Says

^{Solaire Resort & Casino in Manila. Licensed casinos held steady in the third quarter while electronic gaming revenue fell sharply. (Photo: Ramon FVelasquez / Wikimedia Commons)}

The Philippine gaming industry generated gross gaming revenue (GGR) of Php83.72bn in the third quarter of 2026, down 11.41% from Php94.51bn in the same period last year, according to the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR). The regulator said weaker electronic gaming drove most of the decline.

PAGCOR chairman and chief executive Alejandro Tengco said inflationary pressures and geopolitical uncertainty continued to weigh on consumer spending, particularly on discretionary activities such as gaming.

E-Games Take the Hit

GGR from electronic gaming, which covers e-bingo, e-games and bingo grantees, dropped 22.86% to Php35.28bn from Php45.73bn a year earlier. That Php10.45bn fall accounted for the bulk of the industry’s overall contraction, which came to about Php10.79bn.

The electronic segment made up roughly 42% of total industry GGR in the quarter, based on the PAGCOR figures. The regulator did not give a single cause for the fall beyond the spending conditions Tengco described.

Put in peso terms, the split is stark. Licensed casinos lost only about Php0.18bn year on year, and PAGCOR-operated casinos about Php0.15bn, while electronic gaming lost Php10.45bn. The regulator’s figures place almost the entire shortfall in one segment.

The share of the market has shifted accordingly. Licensed casinos now hold 54.20% of industry GGR, electronic gaming about 42%, and PAGCOR’s own casinos roughly 3.6% on the published figures. A year ago, electronic gaming’s share was larger, at about 48% of the Php94.51bn total.

Tengco said the same conditions that weighed on electronic gaming have affected discretionary spending more widely. In the statement he linked the weaker performance of certain segments to those pressures, rather than to any change in licensing or regulation.

“We recognize the challenges facing the industry, but the slower pace of decline in the third quarter is an encouraging development.”

Casinos Hold Steady

Licensed casinos were far steadier. They generated Php45.38bn in GGR, down just 0.40% from Php45.56bn, and accounted for 54.20% of total industry revenue, making them the largest contributor. PAGCOR-operated casinos brought in Php3.03bn, down 4.81% from Php3.18bn.

The pace of contraction also eased. PAGCOR noted that GGR had fallen 20.33% year on year in the second quarter, so the third-quarter decline of 11.41% is a slower fall. Tengco called that an encouraging development in the regulator’s statement.

A Market Under Pressure

The figures come as the Philippines continues to work through changes in its gaming landscape. The country has previously set out ambitions to become Asia’s second-largest gambling market.

Regulators have also looked closely at online gambling, with the anti-money laundering council scrutinising online gambling for money laundering risks.

Tengco said PAGCOR will keep working with licensees to strengthen industry performance while ensuring that gaming is conducted responsibly and in line with regulatory standards.

The third-quarter data covers the period to 30 September. PAGCOR has not published a forecast for the fourth quarter in the release, so it remains to be seen whether the easing in the rate of decline continues.