Louisiana casino revenue drops 9.7% year-over-year in June; land-based venue only winner

Louisiana Gaming Control Board reported overall gaming revenues in June at $265 million across four sectors, down 4.2% from May numbers, and a 9.7% drop when compared to June 2021. Most of it came from the state's 15 riverboat casinos, which produced a total of $151 billion in revenue for June, a 3.2% monthly decline and an 8.4% decrease year-over-year.

Considering the state's land-based casino, riverboat casinos, racinos and video terminals, the only segment that showed a positive monthly variation was the sole, Caesars' land-based property, Harrah’s New Orleans Casino, which saw $21 million in revenue for June, up 1.2% from May.

The racinos reported the largest drop in a month-over-month comparison with an 8.3% decline.

However, Baton Rouge’s three riverboat casinos —the Belle of Baton Rouge, Hollywood Casino, and L’Auberge Baton Rouge— did see a monthly growth, as they earned a combined $22.5 million in June, up from $22.2 million in May. This marks the first monthly increase since March. 

Hollywood Casino Baton Rouge, the first riverboat casino in Louisiana's capital city to announce its move onto land, has encountered setbacks in the construction of its new venue. While the move —first announced in August of 2021— was expected to be completed earlier this year, it has now been delayed with supply chain and river water levels being listed among the main issues.

As for the state's sports betting handle, online and retail sportsbooks combined reported $132.4 million in June, a 22.6% drop from May. The online vertical on sports continued to dominate as it has since January's market launch, with mobile operators taking 86% of the bets made in Louisiana.