After the current fiscal year began with other parts of Nevada playing the hero, the center of it all took the spotlight in September. Casinos on the Las Vegas Strip, along with their counterparts in Laughlin, did the most to produce a new September gaming revenue record.
At the same time, sportsbooks around the state took it on the chin in comparison to past performances in one sport in particular. Despite the progression of monthly revenue records, the current fiscal year might not be the best ever for Nevada casinos.
Las Vegas Strip, Laughlin casinos enjoy annual growth
According to the latest release from the Nevada Gaming Control Board (NGCB), a celebrated streak continued in September. In other good news, the current fiscal year maintained its slight improvement over the previous term.
Statewide, casinos won more than $1.2 billion during September. That’s an increase of almost 1.7% compared to the same month in 2022. Additionally, it pushes the run of months with at least a billion in revenue to 31 in a row. Perhaps most importantly, September 2023 now stands as the most lucrative September ever for gaming revenue in Nevada.
After August Nevada gambling revenue shrank the current fiscal year’s growth rate, but that slight uptick in September held steady. A big part of the reason why the current fiscal year is only marginally up from the past period is that many of the state’s casinos saw year-over-year declines in September.
In fact, Laughlin and the Las Vegas Strip were the only two regions to record significant year-over-year growth for the month. The Strip was up over 6.9% while Laughlin saw 6.4% growth. Things weren’t so good for sportsbooks in Nevada, though.
Sportsbooks are behind 2022 numbers
September is the end of the summer lull for sportsbooks across the United States, including Nevada. However, bettors fared quite well during the month in 2023, especially when it came to bettors’ favorite sport.
The NGCB’s reporting shows that sportsbooks won over 25% less during September of 2023 from wagers on American football than they did in the same month in 2022. Regardless, the win from football bets still accounted for around 47.2% of the whole for September 2023.
Because of declines like this, it increasingly looks like the current fiscal year will not be a record-breaking one for Nevada gaming revenue. It could still be the strongest such term since FY2018-19, however. Casinos in Laughlin and the Las Vegas Strip replicating their annual growth from September could ensure that result.