Nevada’s casino industry set yearly record revenue records statewide and on the Strip when November numbers were counted.
December’s response? “Not so fast.”
Fueled by a record month for the Strip in December, Nevada closed 2022 with more than $14.8 billion in gaming revenue, surpassing 2021’s $13.4 billion by 10.5 percent, the Gaming Control Board of the United States said. the state Tuesday.
The Strip accounted for more than $8.2 billion of the state’s total for the year, up 17.1 percent from last year’s $7.1 billion.
Strip’s revenue in December, totaling nearly $814.2 million, was boosted by a special events calendar that included two Las Vegas Raiders games, the PAC-12 championship football game, the National Finals Rodeo and a UFC bout. Slots revenue of $405 million and baccarat winnings of $146 million drove the Strip’s December earnings more than 25 percent from the year before.
“The Strip was responsible for most of the statewide rise in December,” said control council senior economic analyst Michael Lawton. “The combined off-strip state markets are up just 0.2 percent or $914,000 compared to December 2021.”
Nevada has had 22 consecutive months of $1 billion or more in gaming revenue. During the streak, the state’s total gaming revenue surpassed the state’s previous state record of $1.16 billion in 15 different months, including the current July 2021 statewide record of $1.36 billion.
Lawton suggested monthly gaming revenue growth could moderate in 2023. The control board told the state’s Economic Forum in December that its monthly gaming revenue model forecasts for the year ahead show a decline in gaming revenues of about 1.5 percent statewide, with Strip’s revenues showing no decline. show an increase.
“Flat to moderate growth is good if we stay close to where we are today,” Lawton said. “If we miss 1 or 2 percent, that’s still strong numbers compared to where we were in 2019.”
He said outside variables, such as what the Federal Reserve does with interest rates, will have an effect on Nevada’s earnings. On the plus side, new special events, such as the inaugural Formula 1 race in November, could boost overall game revenue.
Either way, Lawton said the January and February numbers for 2023 should see an increase from 2022, when results were somewhat blunted due to the Omicron variant.
Gaming revenues are rising statewide
In addition to the Strip, nine of Nevada’s 18 submarkets had record totals for 2022, including downtown Las Vegas and the combined areas that make up the Las Vegas locals’ casino sector.
Clark County saw gaming revenue grow 11.8 percent in 2022 to nearly $12.8 billion — matching the total of statewide gaming revenue in 2007, which was a record through 2021.
Downtown Las Vegas casinos posted revenues of $880.2 million, up 4.5 percent from a year ago, and the combined local market reached more than $2.9 billion, up 2, 4 percent.
The Boulder Strip, which includes casinos in Henderson, was the only region of the state to see gaming revenue decline in 2022, though the $966.7 million figure was less than 1 percent below the all-time record of $967.5 million in 2021. Lawton suggested that the market’s revenues were hurt by the timing of the collection of slot machine revenues because the month ended on a weekend.
“The Boulder Strip market remains very healthy,” said Lawton.
Northern Nevada’s major gaming markets set no records in 2022, but surpassed their 2021 totals. Washoe County reached more than $1 billion for the second year in a row, up 2.4 percent. Reno Casinos revenue increased 2.1 percent to $743.8 million.
Sparks, where Legends Bay Casino opened in August, increased gaming revenue by 3.6 percent to $172.8 million.
Record year for sports betting
Nevada’s sports betting industry set a record for revenue of $446.7 million and total wagering of $8.7 billion by 2022, breaking the previous record set in 2021. The numbers were released on the same day Massachusetts became the 33rd state with legal sports betting, an industry that Nevada enjoyed a monopoly nearly five years ago.
Mobile sports betting continued to grow in Nevada, accounting for nearly half of all revenue and $5.9 billion, or 68.3 percent, of all sports betting. Total bets increased from 64.6 percent a year ago.
“Continued customer adoption of mobile sports betting is the catalyst for these results,” said Lawton.
Unlike most sports betting states, Nevada still requires customers to register for a mobile account at a casino in person, rather than remotely.
(This story will be updated with tourist numbers in Las Vegas and passenger totals from Harry Reid International Airport.)