A regulator that runs casinos too
PAGCOR stands for the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation. The government owns all of it, and it answers to the Office of the President. Under its charter, it regulates and licenses gambling in the Philippines and also runs games of its own. Its casinos are known together as Casino Filipino, with branches in major cities on the country's three main island groups.[2]
So its revenue figures cover both sides. Part is what PAGCOR collects from the casinos and gaming firms it licenses. Part is what its own casinos bring in.[1]
Profit and the sports agency
Net income is what is left once costs and payments are taken out. For the nine months it came to 2.17 billion Philippine pesos, against 14.32 billion a year earlier.[1] PAGCOR connects the fall to a Supreme Court ruling that it must hand 5% of its gross revenues to the Philippine Sports Commission, the government's sports agency. According to PAGCOR, that is nearly double what it used to send.[1]
The court settled the matter on 7 October 2025. Sitting as a full bench, it turned down PAGCOR's request to reconsider a decision of 28 May 2024. The Philippine Sports Commission Act asks PAGCOR for 5% of its "gross income". PAGCOR had argued that two items should come off first: the 5% franchise tax it pays, and the government's 50% share. The judges rejected this and called the law's wording "clear and unqualified".[3]
The court also told PAGCOR to set out, year by year from 1993, what it owed the commission and what it actually paid. Any balance still due may be paid over 10 years.[3] In the first half of 2026, PAGCOR sent the commission 2.01 billion pesos, up 58.68% from 1.26 billion a year before.[4] Over the nine months it sent 3.01 billion.[1]
Electronic gaming shrank by more than a third
Total revenue for the nine months was 64.41 billion pesos, 23.41% below the 84.09 billion of a year before.[1] Most of the gap came from electronic gaming. PAGCOR's department that licenses electronic gaming covers electronic casino games, bingo and sports betting offered by licensed venues, on site and on their online platforms.[5] PAGCOR's income from this line dropped from 44.03 billion pesos to 27.63 billion, a fall of 37.23%.[1] The chart below sets each line, and net income, beside the same nine months of 2025.
Alejandro H. Tengco, PAGCOR's chairman and chief executive, pointed to electronic gaming to explain the fall. The release does not say why that line shrank.[1]
In the casinos the falls were smaller. PAGCOR took 23.10 billion pesos from licensed casinos, 3.22% less than a year earlier. Its own Casino Filipino branches brought in 7.28 billion, down 8%.[1] At mid-year the fall in total revenue had been steeper. In July, PAGCOR reported first-half revenue down 26.64%, and money from electronic games and bingo down 41.85%.[4]
Payments to the state
Over the same nine months, PAGCOR paid out 45.28 billion pesos to the government and to public projects. The National Treasury received 27.61 billion of it as the government's 50% share. Social and civic projects got 11.19 billion, and franchise taxes took 2.90 billion.[1] The cities that host Casino Filipino branches received 511.95 million pesos.[1]
Sources
- Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (Philippines) — PAGCOR revenues down 23.41% to Php64.41B in first nine months of 2026 (29 October 2026, English). Revenue, net income and the figures for each line of business, the link PAGCOR draws to the Supreme Court ruling, the chairman's comments, and the payments to the sports commission, the Treasury and others. Saved copy (screenshot, 3 November 2026).
- Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (Philippines) — PAGCOR Corporate Profile (English). Government ownership, the charter's mandate to regulate, license and run games, and the Casino Filipino branches. Saved copy (screenshot, 3 November 2026).
- Supreme Court of the Philippines (Philippines) — G.R. No. 223845, Joseller M. Guiao v. Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation, Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office and the Office of the President, Resolution (7 October 2025, English, Supreme Court E-Library). The final ruling on 5% of gross income, the deductions it rejected, the account from 1993 and the 10-year payment period. Saved copy (screenshot, 3 November 2026).
- Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (Philippines) — PAGCOR revenues down 26.64% in first half of 2026 (30 July 2026, English). First-half revenue, the electronic games and bingo figure, and the payment to the sports commission. Saved copy (screenshot, 3 November 2026).
- Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (Philippines) — Electronic Gaming Licensing Department (PAGCOR regulatory site, English). What electronic gaming covers. Saved copy (screenshot, 3 November 2026).
