Mississippi Casinos look set for record year
Casinos in Mississippi are on their way to a record year after reporting $1.1bn for the first five months.
US.- Mississippi casinos look likely to set a new record for revenue this year, with numbers up against 2019. From January to May this year, gross gaming revenue amounted to $1.1bn, which compares to $2.2bn for the entire year in 2019.
That could put casinos in the way to beating a revenue set in the 1990s, when casinos in the state were legalised.
Read more: Mississippi casinos seek to hire new workers
Mississippi is home to 26 commercial casinos. Twelve are along the Gulf Coast, with eight of those in the Biloxi area. Revenue plunged in 2020 due to the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Keith Crosby, general manager of the Palace Casino in Biloxi, told the Mississippi Today one reason for the growth in revenue is that a lot of businesses have closed.
He said: “[There’s] less competition for people’s discretionary dollars. On the flip side of that effect, the casino industry got ahead of it with some significant safety measures in place to deal with COVID.
Karen Conner, director of marketing for the tourism agency Coastal Mississippi, said the number of tourists is higher than it has been in years. With sports events back on a regular schedule, sports betting also is also helping to revive interest in casinos.
According to state representative Casey Eure (R), “people have been happy to get back to normal life“.
