Under the Boardwalk; Premature panic in Virginia

New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy (D) is taking the long view on casino closures—as in, what happens if they last two months? He’s measuring the negative economic impact at $1.1 billion. According to The Press of
Atlantic City, “That figure encompasses all direct and indirect economic activity associated with the casino industry, including gaming revenue, food and beverage and hotel, but also the impact on suppliers, vendors and workers.” It’s not an entirely bleak picture for the casinos, as Internet gambling is unaffected, but they’re looking at an indefinite retail closure, which is going to upend Atlantic City just when things were looking great: 21 straight months of revenue increases. Last year’s’ $3.3 billion gross has been replaced with a big question mark for 2020. Unfortunately, the American Gaming Association continues to behave recklessly, demanding an immediate resumption, public health be damned.

Meanwhile, our choice for Irresponsible Public Servant [sic] of the Year goes to Las Vegas Mayor Carolyn Goodman (D), who’s still yammering to reopen the casinos, less than a week after Gov. Steve Sisolak (D) shut them down. Evidently public safety is a lower priority with Her Honor than keeping the slot machines clinking.

* Although casinos have been legalized in Virginia, there’s doom and gloom afoot that Coronavirus and an ailing stock market are going to scare off investors. This is nonsense. The five casinos still need local approval in November’s election (assuming it happens on schedule) and the casinos themselves are years from opening. As Caesars Entertainment spokesman Richard Broome said, “Caesars will continue to pursue a gaming license in Virginia and hopes to build and operate a casino in Danville.” Or, as state Sen. Louise Lucas put it, “We have time on our side.” The biggest stumbling block to casinos is the lack of competitive bidding in the enabling legislation, something that Gov. Ralph Northam (D, above) is expected to address.

While Norfolk, Bristol and Portsmouth have deals in place, seven companies are vying for Danville and a couple of others are looking at Richmond. “In light of the current environment and new risks we are facing, it is even more imperative” that there be additional bidding, said developer Steve Johnson, whose Bristol pitch was rebuffed.“Certainly, there’s going to have to be some additional scrutiny,” said Secretary of Finance Aubrey Layne. “They’re not the panacea everybody thinks they are.” As for Caesars, the main worry for Danville is that incoming CEO Tom Reeg pulls the plug as a cost-cutting measure … but there are plenty of other suitors to take his place.

* Wanna bet on sports? We hear camel racing is blowing up. Ditto Russian table tennis and Australian rugby. And don’t forget Belarussian soccer. “We are doing stuff we have never done before. Over/under on stocks. People are betting on video games. We got our creative juices flowing.” So says Dave Mason of BetOnline.ag SportsBook. And it’s not just obscure sports and wacko prop bets. “Our [Internet] casino and poker room numbers’ are through the roof.” Remember, you read it here first.

“What’s left is a plate of horse racing in the UK to Australian Football, to Division II soccer in Aruba. For the truly dedicated gambler, they can find hockey games in Russia, to soccer games in Nicaragua and Hong Kong,” reports the Raleigh News & Observer. And, for something less obscure, there’s the NFL draft—or Tom Brady‘s stats with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. (How many times will he set those cannons off?)  As Mason puts it, necessity has been the mother of copious invention: “This has forced us to put out so much original content. People want action and we are giving them action. Or as much as we can think of.” We suddenly feel much more sanguine about the immediate future of sports betting.

* Foxwoods Resort Casino has furloughed 5,000 employees, with 1,200 (unionized) dealers getting paid leave. There presently about 300 Covid-19 cases in the state. Halfway around the globe, SkyCity Entertainment withdrew its earnings forecast, closed its Adelaide casino and braced itself for casino closures in New Zealand. Construction on an expansion of the Adelaide property continues unabated.

While Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) continues to waffle on anti-coronavirus measures (blaming the disease on New York and New Jersey), the state’s last operational tribal casino finally closed last Sunday. Miccosukee Resort & Gaming held out as long as tenable but evidently decided continued business was no longer feasible. The tribe stated that the casino was “not considered an essential business establishment in the eyes of the government [but] considered the finances of our staff as essential and wanted to keep our doors open for as long as possible.” Better late than never. Your move, guv.