The casino advantage is known as the 'vig' (short for vigorish) or the rake, depending on the game. That edge can be very small (lower than two percent), but over time and the millions of bets placed by casino patrons, that edge earns the casino enough money to build elaborate hotels, fountains, giant pyramids, towers and replicas of famous landmarks. Ĭasinos make money because every game they offer has a built in statistical advantage for the casino. Add to that the revenue of Native American casinos, which brought in $22.62 billion in 2005, and it's safe to say that casino industry profits have been steadily increasing for more than a decade. In 2005, commercial casinos in the United States had gross revenues of $31.85 billion.

While there are certainly big winners at the gaming tables every now and then, the only sure winner in a casino is the owner. A truly enormous amount of money changes hands at casinos every year.