Operator News
US – Nevada continues run of $1bn months with its second best ever run of results
By Phil - 4 October 2021
Nevada casinos generated their sixth consecutive month of $1bn gaming revenues with the Nevada Gaming Control Board confirming statewide GGR reached $1.165bn in August, marking a 22.3 per cent from August 2019, before the onset of the pandemic.
The run of $1bn months started in March, and is now the state’s second best ever run, only beaten by eight months from November 2006 to May 2007.
With domestic and international tourism still hampered by the pandemic, casinos on the Strip are still lagging behind the pre-pandemic figures by 22.3 per cent. They generated $625.7m in GGR, down from July’s record of $793.7m. Downtown Las Vegas casinos generated GGR of $64.2m in August, up 23.2 per cent compared to 2019.
Gaming Control Board Senior Economic Analyst Michael Lawton said: “Nevada continued to record gaming win amounts in excess of pre-pandemic levels in August, with $1.2bn in win. This was up 22.3 per cent over 2019. Strong demand across markets, federal stimulus, the continued rebound of leisure, travel and the return of special events and entertainment continued to propel gaming past 2019 levels. I think we’re still in that trajectory of growth. I’m not going to guarantee a $1bn again, but the blueprint is there to continue. Weekend business is much stronger that mid-week. I think we’ll beat 2019, especially the way things are going. We’re starting to see concerns and challenges—the delta variant, the mask mandate, flight demand is softening.”
He highlighted the reopening of the popular Cirque du Soleil shows Michael Jackson One and The Beatles Love on the Las Vegas Strip and a boxing bout between Manny Pacquiao and Yordenis Ugás at T-Mobile Arena as helping drive traffic along with the United States playing Mexico in the 2021 CONCACAF Gold Cup final, an NFL Las Vegas Raiders preseason game and a music concert featuring Guns N’ Roses, all at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas.
