By
Mike J. Davies
Editor in Chief at Casinos.US Updated: 12/11/2019
Mike is our Senior Editor and experienced gambling strategist. A former hockey player, he transitioned to the casino industry after finishing his B.A. in English. Blackjack systems, online casino guides, gambling terms, and more – Mike is familiar with all fine points of gambling.
Both tribal casinos in Connecticut report revenue increases from slot machine wins., Photo by Pixabay
Both Foxwoods Resort & Casino and Mohegan Sun in Connecticut have reported an increase in gross gaming revenue (GGR) for the second consecutive month. This increase comes from their slot machines.
In November, the win from Foxwoods slot machine came up to a total of $36.6 million, which is 3.8 percent more than the win from the same month last year in 2018. This means that the casino gained as much as $1.3 million. Even though the total amount, which was wagered on the gaming devices, decreased by 0.5 percent year-over-year to $452.3 million, the win from the gaming slots helped the casino increase their overall GGR.
Meanwhile, another tribal casino in Connecticut, Mohegan Sun, also reported an increase in GGR. For November 2019, the casino reported a GGR of $45.8 million in slot winnings, which is a 3.6 percent increase from the same month last year. Just like in Foxwoods, handle – which is the total amount wagered on gaming devices – was also down from $555.2 million in November 2018 to $543.8 million for the same month this year.
This is a significant win for both the casinos as the back-to-back monthly increases came after they experienced a decline in revenue for 15 consecutive months. Both Foxwoods and Mohegan share 25 percent of their slot wins with the state, but they do not share their table game win. They do not have to report their gross gaming revenue from their table game win either.
Both the Native American casinos have managed to entice their customers to come back to their venues instead of going to MGM Springfield. A year ago, when MGM Springfield opened in August 2018, many gamblers in Connecticut flocked to the Massachusetts gaming venue, leaving behind Foxwoods and Mohegan.
However, it appears the $960 million Massachusetts gaming venue could not retain the attention of the customers, as the excitement died down pretty quickly. Although MGM Springfield estimated as much as $418 million for its gross gaming revenue in the first year, it was able to bring in only $273.8 million, which was over $144 million short of their projected amount.
Despite the inability to reach their expectations, MGM Springfield still has decent ratings online. In fact, based on 7,500 Google ratings, the casino is rated 3.9/5. But it seems the fairly new casino cannot beat Foxwoods and Mohegan’s charm.
The slot tax revenues have always been the top pillars of Connecticut’s economy, and as expected, the increase in wins after a 15-month decline is great news for the state. Moreover, in 2006, the state raked in $433.6 million from the slot tax revenues, which went down to only $263.3 million in 2018.
With the revenue increases in November 2019, the state expects that the 13-year slide will be put to an end. In an effort to increase the wins even more, the state has allowed both Foxwoods and Mohegan to jointly develop a satellite casino in East Windsor. This will be located just 13 miles away from MGM Springfield, a clear sign from Connecticut that it is ready to challenge the Massachusetts gaming venue.
However, the development of the satellite casino has been stalled by legal issues, which the state soon hopes to resolve.
Jane ShawMay 18, 2024Read More
Jane ShawMay 15, 2024Read More
Jane ShawMay 13, 2024Read More
Jane ShawMay 11, 2024Read More