Mississippi Gaming Revenue Along the Gulf is Down, Biloxi Casino Lawsuits are Up
Posted on: July 11, 2025, 12:23h.
Last updated on: July 11, 2025, 12:31h.
- Mississippi gaming revenue along the Gulf is down
- The number of lawsuits against casinos seemingly continues to rise
- Mississippi is a major gaming market in the US
Mississippi gaming revenue along the Gulf Coast surged to unprecedented highs in the COVID-19 aftermath, but since the record-setting 2021 campaign, casino win along the Gulf of the United States has slowed in each of the past three years.
Meanwhile, there seems to be an increasing number of lawsuits against the casino resorts along the Gulf.
Last June, a guest at the Beau Rivage alleged that he was falsely imprisoned by casino security and local police. The case was eventually thrown out by a federal grand jury.
A year earlier, a woman sued the Golden Nugget on allegations that it had failed to properly secure its outdoor pool furniture. When a storm arose and a gust of wind lifted a large daybed cushion into the air, which hit her, she claimed she sustained head and neck injuries. That case also went the casino’s way.
In May of this year, a slots player at the Hard Rock alleged in a Harrison County lawsuit that the casino failed to adequately protect guests after he fell off a chair. The plaintiff claims the chair he was sitting on while playing a slot machine broke, causing him to hit the floor and sustain shoulder and arm injuries. That case is ongoing.
Now, Hard Rock is facing yet more litigation, this complaint coming from a VIP player.
Parking Garage Arm
Filed this week in Harrison County Circuit Court, plaintiff Lisa Paulk alleges she sustained physical injuries when a parking garage gate arm suddenly dropped upon her. Paulk’s complaint details that she arrived at the Gulf Coast casino riverboat on Jan. 12, 2024, but her Encore Players Club rewards card didn’t activate the VIP parking garage gate arm to allow her to enter.
Valet personnel sought to help her to no avail. They eventually asked the driver waiting behind her for their card, which allowed the gate arm to lift. The casino staffers told Paulk to walk quickly behind her vehicle, as her daughter had now occupied the driver’s seat and had been instructed to drive through. But as Paulk followed, the gate arm dropped and struck her.
Paulk’s attorneys allege that parking employees at the Hard Rock acknowledged that the parking gate arm had been “malfunctioning for some time.” Paulk is seeking compensation for her claimed neck and back injuries, along with emotional trauma.
In its legal response, Hard Rock attorneys said Paulk’s claimed injuries and neck surgery were unrelated to the gate arm incident and more likely to be related to her preexisting medical conditions. The Biloxi Sun Herald first reported on the Hard Rock lawsuit.
Gulf Coast Casino Tide Lowers
Mississippi’s Coastal gaming market, which includes the 12 casinos along the Gulf, has seen a slowdown in terms of gross gaming revenue (GGR) since 2021. The 12 properties collectively offer 11,500 slot machines, 450 table games, and 6,633 hotel rooms. The resorts employed 9,833 people as of May 31.
In 2021, the Gulf casinos reported GGR of $1.608 billion. In 2022, GGR was flat from the prior year at $1.6 billion.
Casino revenue along the Mississippi Gulf Coast slowed to $1.589 billion in 2023 and to $1.582 billion last year. Through five months of 2025, GGR is down 0.5% from 2024, a difference of more than $2.77 million.
Last Comment ( 1 )
Rooms are monitored and the law needs to investigate stayed in room 1001 was told the next day if i smoked in room again and triggered the air filter alarm for smoking which was a 200 deposit more there is no such air filter.