New Orleans Casino Revenue Down By 31% in December

Another month of revenue losses for Louisiana with New Orleans being the gambling market worst hit by the pandemic.

Casinos Are Open, Albeit at 50% Capacity

The New Orleans casino market experienced a 31% decrease in revenue in December to $35.9 million from nearly $52 million in December 2019, thus becoming the gambling market that suffered the biggest plunge in the state of Louisiana.

In November, the city’s gambling revenue went down as well going from $50.8 million a year ago to $32.3 million. The downward trend is due to the slowdown in tourism caused by Covid-19 and the further restrictions to limit the spread of the virus. Casinos are operating at 50% of their normal capacity to adhere to social distancing recommendations.

According to the latest figures from the Louisiana Gaming Control Board (LGCB), the 13 riverboat casinos, Harrah’s land-based casino and four racinos in the state generated about $161.9 million during December.

L’Auberge Baton Rouge is Louisiana’s Only Facility with Profit

Statewide, casino revenue was down more than 21% in December compared to the same month in 2019. All properties, except for one, reported losses in December’s revenue compared to 2019, continuing the downward trend for a highly taxed sector that is a big contributor to state finances.

L’Auberge Baton Rouge was on the rise by 1.2%, the report shows. Every other facility that remains open reported a decrease, which was by double digits in most of the cases. Diamond Jacks in Bossier City shut down permanently in October. The Isle of Capri Casino in Lake Charles was heavily damaged by Hurricane Laura and will remain closed until Spring of 2022.

Video poker revenue in Louisiana posted an increase of 2.4% in December to $54.5 million from $53.2 million. Revenue from video poker truck stops went up 11.9%, thus mitigating the decrease from bars (38.8%) and restaurants (10.9%).

The three New Orleans area riverboat casinos experienced a 22.6% drop in revenue. Boomtown New Orleans posted a 14.4% drop to $8.3 million from $9.7 million. Treasure Chest had a 28% drop from $8.6 million to $6.2 million. Winnings at the Amelia Belle were a no exception experiencing a 32.4% decline from $3.4 million to $2.3 million.

Louisiana’s gaming industry lost $830 million in revenue through November 2020. Also, there were at least 4,790 lay-offs within the sector at some point during the year. Horseshoe Entertainment in Bossier City only eliminated 978 positions on March 31.