Retail Casino Revenue in Detroit Declines for Fifth Month in a Row

Several predictions for a strong financial ending to November have gone awry, at least for the three retail casinos in Detroit. Statistics released by the Michigan Gaming Control Board on Tuesday, 13th of December showed that casino and sportsbook revenue dipped for the fifth month running in November.

Despite a positive trend in October 2022, retail casinos raked in only $99.9 million in November. This marked the first time that aggregate table games and slot revenues will fall below the $100 million threshold since June 2022.

MGM Grand Detroit, MotorCity Casino and Hollywood Casino at Greektown, three of Detroit’s retail casinos, recorded a 0.8% decline in revenue for November. The collective revenue for the three retail casinos throughout the 11 months was pegged at $1.149 billion. Compared to 2021 figures, which saw the casinos end November with a cumulative total revenue of $1.155 billion, there has been a 0.6% drop.

The major contributors to this decline have come in the past five months, starting from July. Here’s a quick rundown of revenues from July and the decline levels.

MGM posted the largest market share, producing 47% of the total revenue. MotorCity and Hollywood Casino at Greektown accounted for 30% and 23% of the remaining market share, respectively.

All three casino operators in Detroit also paid about $12.4 million worth of wagering taxes to the authorities in November. Similarly, they filed about $8.1 million in gaming taxes to Michigan state agencies, a sharp drop from $8.4 million paid in November last year.

Taken cumulatively, it appears that all casinos suffered revenue loss compared to figures from the past year. However, this doesn’t represent the financial books of Hollywood Casino at Greektown which recorded a 2.9% gain.

Casinos were not the only platforms hit by the financial upset in November. Retail sportsbooks in Detroit also saw a huge dip in handle between October and November. This decline came against the backdrop of a 26.7% increase from September to October 2022.

MGM, MotorCity and Hollywood Casino pooled $18.1 million in handle in the outgone month, compared to $23.5 million recorded in October. November’s figures represent the lowest monthly handle rate in 2022 since July. Compared to November 2021, the monthly handle was a 32% drop, one of the largest year-to-year declines for Detroit’s retail sportsbooks.

In total, the three retail sportsbooks tallied a revenue of $1.9 billion from sports betting, bringing the total aggregate revenue for November to $101.8 million. Throughout the 11 months of 2022, all bookmakers recorded $247.7 million in handle, another 11.7% drop from the cumulative figure of $280.6 million for January to November 2021.

MGCB further reports that the betting platforms paid state taxes worth $70,422, less than half of its $163,625 tax paid in November last year. From betting revenues, the three books also reported $86,071 in wagering taxes to Detroit in November. These figures, as usual, were worse than both the month before and the same period in 2021. 

To be clear, the only improvements in Detroit so far have come from Hollywood Casino at Greektown. On the other hand, MotorCity Casino and MGM Grand Detroit are poised to close the year with worse numbers than they pulled in 2021. Hollywood Casino has already amassed $127.2 million in betting handle, a tad higher than its 2021 total of $110 million.

Total November figures for Michigan online casinos and sports betting platforms are yet to emerge. Nevertheless, there are strong projections for a good month, after a remarkably successful October. Revenue from online casinos in Michigan totalled about $141 million, the fourth-largest monthly tally of any state in the US market. The state also recorded online handle figures of $480.8 million in October, its second-largest, since January 2022.

While Detroit appears to be in decline, the general figures for the state of Michigan have been positive. Only the Michigan Gaming Control Board can confirm if these November projections are truly as they seem or not.