‘Net bets carry Atlantic City; Clubs face crisis

Internet casinos are in New Jersey to stay. They grossed $86 million last month, their highest amount ever. That’s 135% more than a year ago. Golden Nugget was tops with $29 million, followed by Resorts Digital ($18 million) and Borgata ($17 million). That’s $181 million less than Atlantic City would have generated in an average May but it’s progress of a sort. “Land-based gambling revenue almost certainly won’t return in June, and it will take some time to recover while Atlantic City casinos presumably navigate reduced capacity and relatively weak tourism demand,” PlayNJ.com analyst Eric Ramsey said. “Because of that, online casinos will continue to be relied upon to bridge the revenue gap. Even if online revenue can’t fully replace what has been lost from the shutdown, the overall gaming industry would be in much worse shape without it.”

Sports betting more than doubled its April handle, bouncing up to $118 million, albeit in a month that would normally generate $500 million. NASCAR and the Bundesliga drove the action, which boiled down to $10 million in revenue. Resorts Digital/DraftKings/Fox Bet led with $4 million, followed by BetMGM/Borgata with less than a million. “The bottom line sports betting numbers aren’t pretty, but there is a silver lining in how online sportsbooks have managed to survive these shutdowns,” remarked Ramsey. “New Jersey’s operators have been creative in keeping bettors engaged and sportsbooks generating revenue, even when fringe sports are the only real attraction. Thanks to some imagination, it appears online sportsbooks will help the industry get through this.” Added colleague Dustin Gouker, “optimism can be found with DraftKings, which has become a darling of Wall Street since it became a publicly traded company. That shows just how much confidence investors have in the future of sports betting.”

* Fourth of July weekend is sucking the air out of Las Vegas Strip room rates for the weekend after. They’re down 61% (compared to a strong 2019) and -50% midweek. MGM Resorts International is off 57% weekend and 55% on weekdays. Las Vegas Sands is ‘only’ -37% midweek and down 48% on the weekend. Wynn Resorts takes a hard blow on the weekend (-61%), while off 47% midweek, and Caesars Entertainment is down -51% on the weekend but just 33% on weekdays. The average daily rate is a bargain-friendly $105/night.

* Could underground transit be the new trend in Las Vegas? Both Wynncore and Resorts World Las Vegas are reported to be seeking connector lines to Elon Musk‘s transit loop under the Las Vegas Convention Center. Since they’re two of the closest Strip hotels to the center this makes eminent sense. Musk’s success in boring the Convention Center (sorry, we couldn’t resist) is making his company’s services in demand around the country. But if companies as well-heeled as Wynn Resorts and Genting Group want Musk-y tunnels of their own, we’re sure the entrepreneur will be all ears. Resorts World would not even wait for its mid-2021 opening to start tunneling. All aboard, we say. The Las Vegas Monorail is so last century.

* When we read that the world’s nightclub capital was experiencing “an existential crisis,” we thought the Wall Street Journal was talking about the Las Vegas Strip. But no, it’s Berlin, where the goings-on in the clubs would curl Nevada regulators’ hair. “This city’s no-limit clubbing culture, with its drugs, sex rooms and fetish venues, doesn’t fit with the notion of social distancing and strict hygiene rules.” It’s a disease-friendly environment, to say the least, and impresarios fear that toning it down for Covid-19 will toss the baby out with the infected bathwater. “Berlin without clubs is like soup without salt,” said club owner Dimitri Hegemann, in the business for three decades. “If the soup isn’t tasty [read: racy] then the young people also won’t come.”

Could this German scenario also play out on the Strip? We’re skeptical at this point. Compared to Berlin, where nightclubs were the original spore of Covid-19 (as was the case in South Korea), Vegas clubs are tame. Also, prospective clubbers in the U.S. seem awfully risk-friendly. Who cares if they contract Coronavirus so long as DeadMau5 is laying down beats for mindless fist-pumping? One thing Vegas night spots should worry about: Says German spokesman Lutz Leichsenring, “We just can’t see club culture working at half or quarter load.”

* Can Biloxi support a $1.1 billion casino? Developers are betting on it and they already have a site: The acreage once occupied by the President Hotel  & Casino, which was destroyed in 2005 by Hurricane Katrina. The backers are also wagering on the Biloxi City Council to support their request for a tax rebate to jump-start the project. It would include a golf course, spa and hotel, all covering 266 acres. 2,557 full- and part-time employees are predicted. The costliest resort ever built on the Biloxi strip was Mirage Resorts‘ $800 million Beau Rivage, now over two decades old. The former berth of the President, launched in 1992, is now a quiet marina. Biloxi could probably use the economic jolt Broadwater would provide and if it doesn’t qualify for tourism set-asides, what does?

Jottings: The prolonged death throes of Trump Plaza continue. Carl Icahn has finally filed plans with Atlantic City to demolish the eyesore. However, it could be another year before he gets around to it … Good luck for T-Mobile Arena: It has been identified as one of the “hubs” around which the NHL will resume its interrupted season … Topless bathing has been temporarily nixed at Wynncore. The “European” pool is currently used as overflow seating … Paris-Las Vegas reopens June 18, complete with 14 restaurants. CEO Anthony Rodio reports being encouraged by booking trends at other Caesars Entertainment hotels … Fremont Street Experience concerts have been ixnayed, due to fears about Coronavirus + crowds. Sounds reasonable to us, given how social distancing is being flouted … Three Seminole-owned casinos have reopened, including Seminole Hard Rock Hollywood, putting 4,000 Floridians back on the job. All guests must wear masks and the properties are operating at 50% of capacity … MGM Northfield Park resumes racing June 20, followed by MGM Empire City on the 22nd. Spectators will be allowed in the stands in Ohio but not in New York.