Atlantic City casinos are facing record declines in revenue. Its nine casinos dropped by 69% compared to April the previous year.
The revenue drop was caused by the virus outbreak and worldwide lockdowns.
Atlantic casinos suffered the same fate as venues all over the country when Governor Phil Murphy ordered the closure to comply with government safety regulations.
In April, casinos lost $82.6 million in revenue, a substantial drop from $265.4 million the casinos earned in April 2019. This year, the majority of the money came from online gamblers. Online activities brought in $80 million, up by 119% compared to a year ago, when the same operations earned $36.6 million.
Sports events earned only $2.6 million in revenue, with $54.5 million worth of bets whereas last year, bets were close to $314 million. A previous big drop for Atlantic casinos was recorded in March when revenue was 44% down. Such a loss is only compared to the nine-day shutdown due to Superstorm Sandy in 2012.
While there’s no date for the official re-opening of Atlantic casinos, the slow resumption of work of casinos across the country gives hope.
“The casinos will be prepared to welcome back their employees and customers at the appropriate time with the health and safety of all foremost in their plans,” said James Plousis, chairman of the New Jersey Casino Control Commission.
