Go straight to the content.
Massachusetts casino revenue experienced a decline last month, despite the gradual return to normalcy for gambling establishments across the country amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.
It was the most disastrous month ever experienced by the three commercial casinos in the Bay State.
Casino operators have been advocating for the freedom to introduce new products, which has become a major source of frustration for them. The negative consequences of the state government’s inaction are now evident in the declining financial performance of the casinos.
Looking at the historically bad Massachusetts casino revenue
In November, the total gambling revenue from Encore Boston Harbor, MGM Springfield, and Plainridge Park amounted to approximately $45 million. This reflected a significant decrease of around $27 million compared to October and a substantial 43% decline compared to November 2019.
November 2020 marked the lowest gross gaming revenue for all three facilities throughout their entire histories. Although partial-month totals in March and July of this year were even lower.
The table game gross gaming revenue (GGR) experienced a decrease of approximately 36.1% at Encore and MGM compared to the previous month. Similarly, the slot revenue across all three establishments saw a slightly lesser decline of about 33.1%.
It is challenging to determine whether the historic lows in Massachusetts Gaming Commission reports were due to historically poor patronage as admissions data is not included. However, it can be inferred that this outcome was partly intentional.
COVID-19 restrictions played a part in limiting offerings
Since February, businesses have been faced with the difficult task of maintaining operations while also minimizing the spread of COVID-19. This was no exception for the three commercial casinos, as they had to navigate this challenge as well.
The properties have implemented restricted gaming hours and temporarily closed amenities such as hotels and spas. Additionally, they have decreased the capacity on their gaming floors.
The decrease in gaming opportunities could be closely linked to revenue generation. In order to adhere to social distancing regulations, casinos have taken measures such as blocking off seats at gaming tables and removing slot machines from gaming floors.
The win rate for slot machines remained consistent across all three facilities last month, indicating that the decrease in slot revenue was not a result of the sudden increase in cashouts by the casinos. Furthermore, the significant decline in revenue for Massachusetts casinos is also considered an unusual occurrence compared to the rest of the country.
Unlike casinos in other states, Massachusetts casinos have not seen a similar improvement recently. For instance, in September to October of this year, casinos in 12 states and the District of Columbia witnessed a surge of at least 5% in slot and table games GGR.
During the same period, Massachusetts witnessed a decline in its casino revenue, dropping by 2.6%. Among the 13 jurisdictions that experienced month-over-month growth in their casinos, a common factor was observed.
Sports betting primed the pump in other states
Except for Louisiana, all jurisdictions experiencing a minimum 5% increase in slot and table revenue offer legal sports betting, either through online platforms, retail establishments, or both.
In reality, all states, except Delaware, Illinois, and Mississippi, experienced stable slot/table gross gaming revenue (GGR) at their regulated casinos. Out of these three states, only Illinois witnessed a decrease exceeding one percentage point.
Encore and MGM executives are likely bothered by these numbers as they have been advocating for the legalization of sports betting in the state. If they had been given the opportunity to provide online sports betting during the shutdown and ongoing restrictions on their other operations, it could have potentially helped offset the losses in those areas.
Although it may seem like an overreaction at this stage, it could potentially bolster their argument with state legislature members for increased efforts towards legalizing sports betting in the upcoming legislative session.
At present, the primary focus is to prevent any further deterioration in the existing situation.
Related Articles
