The Las Vegas Strip Reports $2.1 Billion In Gambling Revenue, Highest Quarterly Win In History
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Las Vegas is still on a winning streak.
Casinos on the Las Vegas Strip set an all-time quarterly record during the third quarter by collecting $2.1 billion in gambling revenue, according to numbers reported by the Nevada Gaming Control Board on Wednesday. The Strip beat the previous record of $1.8 billion, which was set during the fourth quarter of 2006.
Michael Lawton, a senior research analyst for the Nevada Gaming Control Board, says that the Las Vegas recovery is in full swing.
“It’s old news that the Strip is lagging—it’s officially out pacing pre-pandemic numbers,” says Lawton.
The third quarter started with a bang when Nevada collected $794 million in gambling revenue from casinos on The Strip, the highest single month win total in state history.
Sin City’s gambling revenue is also up 0.6% current year to date compared with the same time in 2019. Revenue from The Strip during September hit $604.6 million, a 9.9% increase over September 2019, before the pandemic-induced recession hit the city.
Brendan Bussmann,partner and director of government affairs with Global Market Advisors, who covers the gaming industry, says he’s not surprised.
“It makes sense—there’s been tons of pent-up demand and the third quarter was kicked off with events in Vegas like Garth Brooks, Bruno Mars and the McGregor fight and it ended with the Raiders,” says Bussmann. “It shows Vegas is not only back but shows its resiliency.”
Statewide, Nevada is also continuing to hit records. In September, the state collected $1.2 billion in gaming revenue, marking the seventh consecutivemonth of $1 billion-plus in revenue. Gambling revenue increased 9.4% in September over the same month in 2019.
The current seven-month rally is the second-longest streak of $1 billion-plus in monthly gambling revenue collected by the state. The state’s record for recording $1 billion-plus in monthly gambling revenue is eight months, which was recorded from November 2006 to May 2007, just before the Great Recession tore through the economy.
Bussmann says he thinks the recovery will continue cautiously for now.
“I don't see it stopping in the short term, but I want to see what happens with the economy,” he says.
“The two biggest challenges going forward include a potential covid resurgence, which would lead to closures, and the other concern is the U.S. economy. With fuel prices up, inflation and supply chain costs going up, these can make the consumer’s wallet more limited and have an impact on domestic travel.”
But two things that can add buoyancy is the return of international travel to Las Vegas for vaccinated foreign nationals in November and the continued climb of business travel and conventions, says Bussmann.
There are a few factors driving the rally, especially in Las Vegas. Baccarat, which historically delivered an average of 17.6% of total Strip revenues between 2016 and 2019, has been down to 13% of total revenues in 2021. But slot machines and sports betting have picked up the slack.
“Record slot play is filling that gap,” says Lawton. “This third quarter represents the highest slot win in The Strip's history.”
Total slot win at casinos in Vegas during September hit $355.3 million, a 15.6% increase over September 2019. For the quarter, slots generated an all-time record of $1.1 billion. This is up from the previous record set during the second quarter of this year of $1.04 billion. (The previous record before this year, $897.5 million, was set during the third quarter of 2007.)
Sports betting is also doing its share across the state. Sports pools brought in $54.2 million in September, the third highest total of all-time. Sports pool drop of $786.5 million hit an all-time record set last year. Mobile sports wagers hit $495.1 million, with the state bringing in $16.7 million.
After July’s record-breaking numbers, Colin Mansfield, an analyst from Fitch Ratings, said the recovery timeline has not changed and Fitch is still predicting a full Vegas recovery in 2023. In a note published last month, Macquarie Research referred to the outlook for Las Vegas as “positive” and predicts Vegas will recovery fully by 2022.
October has been trending positively and November, with big events like the Rolling Stones playing at Allegiant Stadium, the Canelo Alvarez middleweight championship fight and a big auto convention, could also produce positive results for Vegas and the state.
“Right now, there’s nothing out there that tells me we won't continue this monthly $1 billion dollar gaming win,” says Lawton.
