Gambling grosses for last month have been tallied and it’s an understatement to say they’re boffo. Nevada casinos raked in $1.3 billion, a 14% leap over 2021. You can see why we think that—as it pertains to gaming—a recession is “the most overhyped narrative of the last year.” It simply refuses to manifest itself. That’s especially true of the Las Vegas Strip, which vaulted 25% to $814 million. Downtown took it on the kisser, down 7% to $69 million. Hopefully, new product at the Fremont Hotel can help reverse that before it becomes a trend. The Boulder Strip also had a rough month, slipping 8% to $64 million.
However, long-anemic North Las Vegas was up 5% to $25 million and miscellaneous Clark County was flat at $137 million. Laughlin hopped 8% to $32 million, while Utah-facing Mesquite and Wendover were bonny, jumping 11.5% and 20%, respectively ($16 million and $22 million). Snowbirds avoided Lake Tahoe, which tumbled 16% to $15.5 million whilst Reno was up 6% to $59 million. A lot of mixed signals, yes, but more pluses than minuses.
Getting back to the Strip, loose slots meant that the house won 7% more on 16% higher coin-in. Table games were gangbusters, however, with Big Gaming winning 40% on 3% less wagering. Players may have bet enthusiastically but apparently none too wisely. Baccarat wagering vaulted 21.5% and odds were definitely with the house—70% higher win than last year. It’s a nascent trend the industry has to like.
Chicagoans beware! Here’s a foretaste of what Bally’s Corp. has in store for you. Bally’s Atlantic City is rolling out a ‘deal’ for an appearance by KC & the Sunshine Band, its only tentpole event of 1Q22. For a Classic King room (smoke-free) in the Dennis Tower, it will set you back a mere $419. That includes two concert tickets and two free drinks but hardly strikes us as very George, especially when Borgata and Hard Rock Atlantic City are making the Boardwalk’s entertainment scene much more competitive.
Then again, you might want to avoid Atlantic City for a while, now that a boneheaded judge has ruled that guns are A-OK in casinos and on beaches. Because Second Amendment, y’know, the only constitutional amendment that matters anymore.) And a casino is hardly where you want to be when somebody with a grudge may be packing heat. Not to mention that this creates a window of opportunity for wannabe casino robbers. If this is one of those supposedly ‘tough on crime’ federal judges, we want our tax dollars back.
There’s major trouble brewing for 888 Holdings, so bad that CEO Itai Pazner has had to quit, pronto. In a scandal that will give gambling opponents a field day, 888’s Know Your Customer regime fell down on the job, leading to the suspension of VIP betting accounts in the Middle East. This comes on the heels of United Kingdom fines for deficient guards against money laundering and poor anti-problem-gambling measures. Lumbered with debt from its acquisition of non-U.S. William Hill assets, 888 now faces the consequences of a 27% stock-price plunge. Already noises are being made about pulling 888 back from the North American market, where it has made minimal penetration. The Mideast imbroglio is expected to cost 888 $49.5 million and if you’ve got a position on this sinking ship it might be time to man the lifeboats.
Speaking of regulatory dereliction, Nevada Gov. Joe Lombardo (R) has committed his first serious misstep by appointing sanctioned, voter-rejected former judge (and erstwhile pit boss) George Assad to the Nevada Gaming Control Board. Assad is definitely an expert on casino crime: His son held up Bellagio 11 years ago in what Howard Stutz describes as “a high-profile heist.” Hmmm, that ‘family values’ thing doesn’t seem to be working out in the Assad household. This would hilarious if it weren’t such a travesty of regulation, with Lombardo supplying the punchline by proclaiming, “I’m confident that George will honorably execute the mission of the board.”
If law enforcement and the gaming industry aren’t up in arms about this, they ought to be. The legal fraternity has already weighed in on Assad, with only 31% of attorneys surveyed by the Las Vegas Review-Journal saying he should be reelected. (He wasn’t.) That was the worst score of any judge, ever. He’s also been censured by his peers for throwing a woman in jail on a misogynist whim. The Control Board is already under negative scrutiny after Chairman Kirk Hendrick‘s ties to Station Casinos were uncovered by reporter Dana Gentry. That’s concerning but Assad deserves to be shown the exit door outright. There’s too much at stake.
Jottings: Las Vegas Sands posted a juicy $1.8 billion profit last year. That money won’t be gathering dust, as CEO Rob Goldstein has committed $3.8 billion to non-gambling projects in Macao. We hope they can be monetized by 2032 … It took a while but new-look Palms Casino Resort appears to be finding its footing. Today it announced a new purpose for the problematic Kaos space: an eight-performance residency by popular Frankie Moreno. Tickets start at an insanely reasonable $32 … Chalk up one for sanity in Iowa. The Casino Queen Marquette is moving ashore, creating a new pavilion to house 17,000 square feet of gambling. That would leave only two riverboat casinos in the Hawkeye State … Parx Casino is feeling its oats. The Pennsylvania leader in revenue is planning a 15-story hotel …
Lawmakers in Maryland have filed a bill to legalize Internet casinos. The Free State’s six gambling houses would all be juiced into licenses … Potowatomi Casino in Milwaukee is scrapping its temporary sports book, and adding a permanent, 17-kiosk book, as well as a poker room where the interim sports book used to be. During construction, the TopGolf swing suite will be cannibalized to provide sports-betting space … Not to be outdone, Foxwoods Resort Casino will incept construction on a water park. Ground for the 13-acre project will broken tomorrow morning. Foxwoods is also devouring its Grand Ballroom to add 50,000 more square feet of casino.
Why does Wendover do well, when they have no flights in or out? It’s a place I wanted to explore, but with their airport operations shut down it’s probably not going to happen. I thought Utah was full of LDS who aren’t supposed to gamble? This must be a myth.
I think the judge’s last name (Bump) was not spelled correctly. If I read the New Jersey news correctly, you can now bring your gun into a school, place of worship, any bar, or a bank.
Guns should be allowed in casinos… If they are muskets, in a well regulated militia, preferably supervised by General George Washington… Otherwise it might be dangerous having drunken idiots who just lost their rent money and are mad as heck…