[toc]August 2017 was a big month for Nevada casinos, with a double-digit increase in gaming revenues statewide. This thanks in part to the big Mayweather-McGregor boxing match.
The Nevada Gaming Control Board released its monthly Nevada Gaming Revenues and Collections report at the end of last week. According to the report, Nevada’s casinos reported a total gaming win of more than $989.5 million for the month of August 2017.
This represented a whopping 14.9 percent increase over the same month last year. Nevada casinos posted a gaming win of a little more than $861 million in August 2016.
Year-to-date Nevada gaming revenues up
The big August also helped year-to-date revenue numbers get off to a great start. In fact, year-to-date Nevada gaming revenues are ahead 5.9 percent over the same period last year.
The fiscal year for Nevada’s gaming industry begins on July 1. So far, Nevada casinos have reported $1.98 billion in revenue compared to $1.87 billion for the same two-month period in fiscal 2016.
As usual, Clark County posted the biggest numbers and gains in the state. Clark County casinos reported an $841 million gaming win in August 2017, compared to $724 million in August 2016. This represents a 16.1 percent increase.
Las Vegas Strip casinos lead the state
Not surprisingly, Las Vegas Strip casinos led the way, reporting the largest casino win and percentage increase in the state. In fact, Las Vegas Strip casinos reported a gaming win of more than $545 million in August 2017, compared to $449 million in the same month last year. This represents a 21.3 percent increase.
The Boulder Strip reported the second-largest gaming win of all areas in the state. However, the $74 million gaming win reported by Boulder Strip casinos was up less than one percent from the $73.6 million reported in August 2016.
Downtown Las Vegas saw the second largest year-over-year increase in gaming revenues in August. Its $48.5 million gaming win was 13.4 percent ahead of the $42.7 million reported last year.
Mayweather-McGregor makes an impact
According to the Las Vegas Review-Journal newspaper, fighters Floyd Mayweather and Conor McGregor had a lot to do with the increases.
The August 27 Mayweather-McGregor boxing match saw Mayweather, an undefeated boxing champion, take on MMA champion turned boxer McGregor. The Las Vegas Review-Journal reported the fight created a record $65 million handle for Nevada sports books. Plus, it also created some big spinoff business for Las Vegas area casinos.
Senior research analyst for the Nevada Gaming Control Board’s Tax and License Division Michael Lawton told the newspaper the fight was a large contributor to gaming win sports wagering, as well as table games and slots.
Plus, football and baseball betting contributed as well, with the football win up 111.8 percent and baseball up 772 percent.
Photo by Ira Bostic / Shutterstock.com
