Atlantic City Casinos See Revenues Decline 23 Percent in July, Win Totals $248M

Posted on: August 12, 2020, 03:28h. 

Last updated on: August 13, 2020, 08:12h.

Devin O'Connor Read More
Expertise: Commercial Gaming, Entertainment, Politics.

Atlantic City casinos won $248.6 million last month — their total gross gaming revenue (GGR) derived from brick-and-mortar operations, online casinos, and land-based and mobile sports betting.

Atlantic City casinos GGR
Atlantic City casinos welcomed back guests last month, and business was about half of what it was in July 2019. (Image: Adam Monacelli/Courier-Post)

July’s GGR represents a 23 percent decline in casino year-over-year win. Revenue at the nine physical properties fell nearly 47 percent, the gaming floors keeping $147.4 million of patron gambling money.

Internet gaming continued to prove critical, with online casinos winning $87.5 million, a 122.5 percent premium in July 2019.

Casino sportsbook revenue came in at $13.7 million. The two racetrack books — FanDuel at the Meadowlands and Monmouth Park’s William Hill — reported sports betting income of $15.7 million. FanDuel is the state’s richest sportsbook operator, the platform responsible for more than $14 million of the sports betting win.

Online Revenue Stream

New Jersey is one of just four states that has full online gaming with internet slot machines and table games. And while the casino operators have lost hundreds of millions of dollars — if not more — in gaming and operational revenue, their internet platforms at least continued to supply the companies with some sort of income during their mandatory closures.

Through seven months of 2020, internet casinos have won $510.2 million. That’s nearly double the amount the online sites won through July in 2019. The online gambling market is flourishing during the pandemic.

COVID-19 has driven American gamblers online with casinos shut and sports disrupted, (but) gamblers have still gotten their fix,” read a recent article in The Economist.

As a result of the coronavirus, Grand View Research, a market research firm that covers technology industries, predicts the online gambling market will grow at an annual rate of 11.5 percent from 2020 to 2027. If that is realized, the internet gambling market would be worth $127.3 billion in seven years.

Back in Business

Atlantic City casinos were permitted to begin reopening on July 2, just ahead of the critical holiday summer weekend.

However, Borgata, the market’s top-performing casino, opted to remain shut after New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy (D) extended restrictions on indoor dining and the consumption of alcoholic beverages. The MGM Resorts casino in the Marina District only opened on July 23.

The nine casinos continue to operate under strict regulations, most notably a 25 percent occupancy limit. Employees and guests are required to wear masks. Because of the casino restrictions, as well as limitations on domestic travel across the country that has hampered summer plans, officials in New Jersey said they’re pleased with July’s performance.

“While public health remains a concern, the tourism and gaming sector has started on the road to recovery. I know that Atlantic City is resilient, and given time, it will rebound,” New Jersey Casino Control Commission Chair James Plousis told the Press of Atlantic City.

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