New York casinos struggling to reach pre-pandemic figures

The general manager of Rivers Casino in New York has said casino visitation remains low although sports betting has reached record levels.

US.- Casinos in New York are struggling to hit pre-pandemic figures.

Gov. Andrew Cuomo gave the green light for casinos to reopen on September 9, but with various sanitary protocols in place. This includes operating at a 25 per cent reduced capacity.

Customers must wear face masks and the number of slot machines has been reduced.

General manager of Rivers Casino, Justin Moore, has said that the weekends are attracting crowds, but cannot be compared to pre-pandemic levels.

Speaking to media, Moore said: “Certain days of the week, there are no crowds. It’s very quiet. No wait to get inside the building.” 

The reduced crowds are a concern for Rivers, which brought back 65 per cent of its workforce on reopening to cater to the 1,000 patrons that are permitted on-site at any given time.

However, Moore reported that sports betting has pushed past pre-pandemic figures as bettors enjoy wagering on single-event sports in-person once again.

He said: “This past Sunday our sportsbook was the busiest we’ve seen since reopening and the numbers match last year.”