Summary:
- A $40m decline in baccarat and slots caused the dip.
- Revenues were down 3.8%
- The Strip and local casinos saw a decline.
The Nevada Gaming Control Board released the state’s gaming revenue reports for August yesterday, revealing a 3.8% drop. The main reason behind the decrease was a significant decline of $40 million in baccarat win and slot earnings. The state earned only $1.16 billion, down from $1.2 billion in 2023.
Each sector of the state saw a decline in revenues, which led to a major decrease in earnings like in March. The Las Vegas Strip dropped 3.5%, with only $643.6 million in earnings. Downtown Las Vegas was down even more, dipping 8.8% to $38.3 million.
The Boulder Strip was down even more, with a 21.8% decrease in earnings, at $64.8 million. The region brought in over $82 million in August 2023. In total, casinos that serve the local players recorded just over $231 million, a more than 6% decrease in earnings.
Reasons Behind the Revenue Loss
The main suspects behind the loss are baccarat win and slot earnings. Gaming Control Board senior economic analyst Michael Lawton commented that the decline in the $39.9 million baccarat hold was the main reason behind revenue decreases. Total wins once you exclude baccarat came in at an increase of 2.8%.
The slot win statewide was down to just over $31 million due to a collections timing issue. August ended on a weekend so that the slot earnings will roll into this month. Due to the timing component, we may see a higher-than-average return for slots.
Slots on the Strip earned just over $366 million and decreased by 0.4%, which equals $1.4 million. Coin-in was up 8.5%, and slot hold was steady at 7%, a slight difference from 7.6% last year.
Sports Betting and Mobile Earnings
Another revenue earner for Nevada is the sports betting sector, with August totals at $25 million. This was a huge jump of over 38% compared to August last year. The hold percentage was 5.5%, higher than the 4.2% from last year.
Mobile bets still reign supreme, with only a 1% drop at $3.3 million. The full mobile bet total came in at over $313 million. Mobile betting accounts for over 68% of the state’s sports betting sector wagers. Football brought in a significant amount, up over 73%, with $8.7 million in earnings.
The first weekend of football fell in late August, which helped boost the overall earnings. Other sports generated over $7 million, an increase of more than 66%. The Olympics helped in this section of the revenue totals.
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