End of the honeymoon; Virgin Hotel clings to virginity

Over in hitherto impervious Ohio, casinos grossed $133.5 million. Gov. Mike DeWine‘s curfew surely didn’t help business but could the economic miseries that have plagued neighboring jurisdictions be catching up with the Buckeye State? We’re expecting a lean December and hedging our bets after that. Thanks in part to shutdown of the Detroit market, Hollywood Casino Toledo was an outperformer, up 5% to $16.5 million. No other casino or racino was revenue-positive. MGM Northfield Park ceded first place, with revenues falling through the floor 27% to $15.5 million. Jack Cleveland plunged 22.5% to $14.5 million and Hard Rock Cincinnati (pictured) dove 27% to $13 million. Hollywood Columbus fell 15.5% to just shy of $15 million. Scioto Downs tumbled 17% to $13 million while Jack Thistledown dipped 5% to $13 million. Belterra Park had the worst of both worlds, toppling 23% to a state low of $5 million. Miami Valley Gaming was hit hard (-27%) for $11 million, Hollywood Dayton slipped 9% to $9 million while Hollywood Mahoning Valley slid 12%, also $9 million. Casinos in other states have been living on borrowed time and stimulus checks. Could that be the case finally in Ohio too?

In what would normally seem like a sign of trouble but looks these days like prudence, Virgin Hotel Las Vegas has announced another postponement of its debut. CEO Richard Bosworth cited Covid-19 concerns as being top-of-mind in pushing back the much-anticipated opening. He also cited “current conditions of the market,” i.e., lean. When $100-$110/night is the going average on the Strip, it’s hardly the time to rolling out pricey new product. No new opening date has yet been announced.

Forget the New England Patriots‘ evisceration of the Los Angeles Chargers. Blowouts are expected to be the very rare exception, no longer the rule … or so say the major sports books. As aggregated by TheLines.com, the closest thing to a beatdown is the 13.5-point edge given the Seattle Seahawks next weekend—against the 0-12 New York Jets, who came within a whisker of humiliating the Las Vegas Raiders last Sunday. Even the Miami Dolphins are only 7.5-piint underdogs to the supercharged Kansas City Chiefs. Instead we have a lot of 1.5-2.5 point spreads, which should make it easy for teams to do what bettors like best: cover. (The Raiders won last week but they didn’t cover.) The tightest contest is expected to be the Buffalo Bills at the San Francisco 49ers, with a one-point spread, while the gaudiest over/under is Green Bay at Detroit, a projected 55.5-point shoot ’em up. Over/unders on six games were unavailable, presumably thanks to Covid uncertainties.

Your casino or your life. That’s the message from Americans for Nonsmokers Rights, which wants federal relief (if any is forthcoming) to go only to smoke-free casinos, presumably to bring the noncompliant to their knees. Perversely, ANR wants the American Gaming Association to carry this message to Congress. We can’t even imagine AGA President Bill Miller‘s reaction when handed the ANR ultimatum, especially when ANR dismissively refers to his bully pulpit as a “perch.” “While the gaming industry is just as deserving of taxpayer dollars as other industries hit hard by the pandemic, we take issue with casinos potentially receiving such relief funding that is necessitated by a pandemic involving respiratory issues while still permitting an activity—indoor smoking—that promotes the spread of COVID-19,” is the heart of ANR’s argument.

“In states with permanent smokefree policies, such as Maryland and Ohio, the industry is experiencing year-over-year revenue increases, despite operating at reduced capacity. Casinos in states that were forced to abide by a state-imposed, temporary smokefree policy in order to reopen, such as Pennsylvania, have seen revenues remain relatively stable compared to the previous year, especially considering they have been operating at significantly reduced capacity, and the smokefree policy has helped to keep 99 percent of gaming employees COVID-free,” continues the letter. That’s all well and good, and we concur with ANR’s endgame. But holding Paycheck Protection Program and other relief funds hostage just redounds to the detriment of employees, the very people ANR says it is trying to protect.