Indiana has joined the growing litany of states with disappointing May casino receipts. The statewide gross of $196.5 million represented a 7% drop-off from last year at this time. Only two casinos defied the trend. French Lick Resort leapt 14.5% to $7.5 million and tribal Caesars Southern Indiana rose 7% to $22 million. Not even Hard Rock Northern Indiana was immune to the blahs. It slipped 7% to a still-impressive $34 million. Horseshoe Hammond couldn’t take advantage, plummeting 15% to $24.5 million, while nearby Ameristar East Chicago plunged 15% to $15 million. Blue Chip got slammed -16% to $10 million. Down south, Bally’s Evansville (above) slid -7% to $13.5 million.
The state’s two racinos weren’t spared, with Horseshoe Indianapolis dipping 3% to a robust $28 million, while Harrah’s Hoosier Park dropped 8.5% to $19 million. Among the smaller properties, Rising Star fared fairly well, off only 4% for a modest $3.5 million, while Belterra Resort slipped 7% to $7 million. Hollywood Lawrenceburg, meanwhile, dove 13% to $12.5 million. Probably the most worrisome aspect of all this has to be not the year/year comparisons but the fact that gambling lucre fell 1% below 2019 levels, which we hope is not a portent of things to come. Sports betting, meanwhile, yield $34 million in revenue on $283.5 million in handle. DraftKings and FanDuel made big gains, to reach $11 million and $13.5 million respectively, while the bottom fell out of Barstool Sports, which finished way below the $1 million cutoff we use.
By contrast, May’s gambling receipts in Missouri were only modestly below last year’s, down 1.5% to $161 million. This put the Show-Me State a healthy 5.5% above 2019’s tally. Ameristar St. Charles was down 4% and Hollywood St. Louis (pictured) up 6%, putting them in closer-than-usual competition, $24 million to $22 million. River City tumbled 7.5% but notched $21 million, while Horseshoe St. Louis outperformed again, up 3% to $13 million. Likewise, Bally’s Kansas City was up 2% to $11 million. Ameristar Kansas City was flat at $17 million, Argosy Riverside subsided 7.5% to $14 million, while Harrah’s North Kansas City ceded 5.5% to $14 million. Isle of Capri Boonville dominated outstate casinos, up 6.5% to $8 million. Century Casinos was down 5.5% in Cape Girardeau ($6 million) and -2% in Caruthersville ($4 million). As for sports betting … wait, Missouri doesn’t have sports betting. Never had it. Never will.
But New York State does! Online sports betting produced $152 million last month on handle of more than $1.3 billion. FanDuel was well out front with $76 million, pursued by DraftKings with $48 million, with Caesars Sportsbook hanging out at $14 million. BetMGM ($9 million) and quitter PointsBet ($1 million) also finished respectively. That’s more than be said for WynnBet, Resorts World and last-place finisher BallyBet, all far below our Mendoza Line.
Speaking of DraftKings, it evidently thinks it’s too special to be regulated in Maryland. It and other operators want the Free State to waive oversight of promotional offerings, freeing them up to say damn well anything. As if! This is hardly the time for such leniency. However, sports books would like to present regulators with a fait accompli, unveiling new promos only five days before they go live. Whinged OSB providers, “The submission of promotions prior to advertising/marketing efforts limits the ability to adequately consider promotions because of unknown variables which often accompany events that are attractive for sports bettors.”
Replied Maryland Lottery & Gaming Director John Martin, “we feel that reviewing the details of promotions before they launch is a reasonable step that’s in the best interests of consumers.” True that. DraftKings also went off the reservation, wanting no dollar limit on the amount it can offer in ‘free’ bets. It’s DKNG’s money to waste, we admit, so maybe they should be allowed to hang themselves. Still, sports betting in Maryland is less than eight months old, so it seems too soon to be letting operators off the leash.
Jottings: Former Massachusetts governor “Cautious Charlie” Baker, one of our favorite pols, has thrown circumspection to the winds in his new role as NCAA president. He wants to monetize collegiate sports by a tighter affiliation with sports betting. Both in poor timing and lack of self-awareness, this proposal seems singularly tone-deaf, especially coming from Baker … Deutsche Bank analyst Carlo Santarelli deemed MGM Resorts International‘s valuation “compelling” last week. He thinks the company will fish or cut bait this year regarding its half-ownership of BetMGM, which continues to hang fire … Elsewhere, the company is rumored to be sniffing around Thailand, along with Galaxy Entertainment. It’s believed a casino resort could open by 2030, effectively beating Japan to the punch … Councilwoman Reva Trammell (D) and others won’t rest until they’ve crammed a casino down the throat of a reluctant Richmond electorate. “The people voted against having a casino in the city. So is this to authorize another referendum,” queried one voter. “If that doesn’t pass, will there be a third referendum?” Probably … A giant doughnut, and an outdoor bar adorned with carousel horses are part and parcel of the new-look Plaza Hotel. Kudos to CEO Jonathan Jossel for patiently and incrementally improving a once-challenged property …
Star Entertainment probably shouldn’t even be in the casino business anymore, given its reckless operating record. So it ought to be a relatively minor hiccup that the opening of Queen’s Wharf Brisbane casino-resort has been pushed back nearly a year, to next April. “We are disappointed, but this transformational development for Brisbane has been eight years in the making already and it will be well worth the wait,” wished Star CEO Robbie Cooke … Next up for Hard Rock International is a $350 million casino in Ottawa. Why so cheap? Because Hard Rock is revamping the extant Rideau Carlton Casino. Ground was broken last Tuesday … Could casino gambling be coming to the Waldorf Astoria Monarch Beach Resort & Club in Dana Point? The California spread, which sits on the scenic Pacific Coast Highway, sold a 40% stake to the San Manuel Band of Mission Indians, which reserves the option to “increase its ownership through one or more future transactions.” We’d bet the farm they will … Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear (D) has doubled down on his commitment to launch sports betting in time for NFL season. By law, the new betting regime must launch no later than Dec. 28.