Nevada Casinos Post $1B+ GGR for the 15th Consecutive Month

The casino scene in the Silver State is looking pretty rosy after the state recorded its fifteenth straight month of over $1 billion in gross gaming revenue (GGR) since March 2021. According to data from the Nevada Gaming Control Board, gaming venues in the state brought in a $1.3 billion GGR in May, following April’s 1.13 billion win. Not only was this the highest figure ever reported in May, but it was also a 5.7% increase from the figures reported last year. The figure also surpassed May 2019’s pre-pandemic figure of $984.5 million.

Michael Lawton, the Senior Research Analyst of the Nevada Control Board, announced the shiny performance in a statement saying:

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“Nevada continued to record gaming win amounts in excess of pre-pandemic levels in May with $1.3 billion in win. This month’s total win was up 32.4 percent over May 2019 and 5.7 percent over May 2021. Additionally, this month represented the 15th consecutive month that the state has recorded $1 billion in monthly gaming win.”

Clark County Blazes the Trail

As expected, Clark County, home to Las Vegas, led the way in the amount of revenue collected. The county recorded a $1.1 billion win, which accounts for a remarkable 87% of the total revenue collected in the Silver State. This is the highest ever recorded GGR for a county in May and is also the market’s fourth-highest total of all time, an impressive fete without a doubt. The outstanding nine-figure ticket also accounted for a 7% increase in Clark County on a year-over-year basis.

The Las Vegas Strip, of course, drove these notable figures in Clark County. Despite having one less weekend in May this year compared to May last year, the strip casinos won $731.5 million, which accounts for an increase of almost 12% from May 2021. In addition, downtown Las Vegas also posted a fairly impressive win of nearly $78.9 Million, representing a 5% increase compared to the same period last year.

It’s vital to note that the tremendous numbers recorded in the world’s richest gaming drag were not a result of pure luck. Instead, the Las Vegas strip has seen an abundance of visitors who have no doubt fueled to a greater degree the phenomenal haul recorded.

For instance, in May, Las Vegas played host to the highly anticipated Canelo Alvarez vs. Dmitry Bivol boxing match that took place in the T-Mobile Arena. Moreover, the Electric Daisy Carnival music festival also made a much-anticipated comeback at the Las Vegas motor speedway, and a concert by the Eagles also helped drive crowds to the strip. All in all, May 2022 was a stellar month for Clark County’s entertainment scene at large.

Lawton pointed out that it indeed was no mean feat for the heart of Sin City to best last year’s May showing. Furthermore, he added that the region should brace for stiffer year-over-year competition in the coming months as the second half of 2021 recorded particularly astronomical performances. He said in part:

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“The Strip faced a very difficult comparison versus the growth rate for May 2021. Moving forward, the Las Vegas Strip will be facing stiff comparisons for the remainder of the calendar year.”

Some Las Vegas’ Neighbors Failed to Impress

Things might have looked pretty good for Las Vegas gaming, but some of its surrounding areas weren’t as lucky. The Las Vegas tourism landscape is indeed experiencing a post-pandemic revival that is evident in the good numbers it is posting. Its neighbors, on the other hand, are struggling with a slight collective drop of 2% year over year.

All Clark County markets did well, except North Las Vegas and Laughlin experienced considerable double-digit growth compared to their May 2021 and May 2019 figures. Other surrounding areas like Lake South Tahoe saw a revenue drop of 14.8% against May last year.

Similarly, Washoe Gaming’s revenue slid by 4.8% from May 2021 to $87.6 million. Reno Gaming’s revenue also declined from May last year by 4.5% to 62.9 million. While Las Vegas may have overcome the issue of May 2022 being one week shorter than last year’s, many analysts suspect this may be the cause for the decline in its neighbors’ figures.

Table Games & Slot Machines Soar as Sportsbooks Bring Mixed Results

Table, counter, and card games saw an increase of 10% to $430 Million from the same period last year. Slot machines also did well with a reported $870.1 million win which translates to a 3.5% increase from a 7% win rate.

Meanwhile, Nevada sportsbooks collected $27 million in revenue, a 1% drop from last year’s figures, as sports bettors a higher rate of winning in May 2022. As for the volume of wagers processed by sportsbooks, Nevada reported a $561.6 million handle, translating to a 15% increase from May last year.

As has been the norm since the pandemic hit, the majority of wagers were placed via online and mobile sportsbooks. So, the $397.6 million handle collected by online and mobile sportsbooks in May is 71% of the total wagers seen in the Silver State. Additionally, online sportsbooks also brought in $16.4 million in revenue, which marks a healthy 24% jump year on year.

Visitor Volume Climbs in Sin City

As every sector gradually tries to re-ignite on the back of a punishing COVID-19 pandemic, Las Vegas’s economic backbone is undoubtedly back to its former glory. Passenger volume at the Harry Reid International Airport (formerly McCarran Airport) was just shy of its all-time monthly record in May, with 32,000 flyers. According to the Clark County Department of Aviation, the Reid Airport recorded its third-busiest month ever with 4.57 million passengers. Only October 2019 (4.6 million) and May 2019 (4.59 million) have seen more passenger numbers.

Similarly, the Las Vegas Convention and Visiting Authority disclosed that Sin City received 3.4 million visitors in May 2022, a 20% surge from the 2.9 million visitors reported over the same period a year ago. While that figure is welcomed, it must be noted that last year’s figures are largely hinged on the fact that the pandemic was at its peak. With that in mind, the May 2022 figure still falls behind May 2019’s visitation numbers in Sin City by 9%.

That being said, the improving figures will no doubt spelled good news for the establishments around the city. Room occupancy rose to 82.6%, a 12% uptick from May 2021. Weekend room occupancy has also shot up to 91.9% against the recorded 87.8% at a similar time a year ago.

It’s worth pointing out that even though visitation numbers are expected to improve going forward, there should be some inflationary impact on many hospitality venues. Nonetheless, industry experts have called for calmness on the subject as the inflation impact isn’t expected to be as severe on the leisure business compared to other businesses.