September is a month of exciting sports opportunities holding a special place in all enthusiasts’ hearts, as it greenlights the new NFL season. The beginning of this month saw the first events of its rich schedule, coming at a crucial time for New York’s sports wagering field. The budding offering allowed players to place their bets in person for the first time ever, while they boosted casino locations’ gaming revenues.
New York has been waiting for this moment for the past more than a year, especially because of the positive impact it was projected to have on day-to-day casino operation. Local commercial casino complexes have been reporting their struggles with slumping gaming revenue and fewer people making their way there. The main reason behind such tough conditions has been neighboring Pennsylvania and New Jersey with their online betting possibilities.
Sports Wagering Attracts a Crowd
Despite the special conditions, allowing only in-person betting, local casino locations reported an impressive surge in their gaming revenues that coincided with the beginning of this year’s NFL season. New York Gaming Commission was quick to reveal the surge in the four commercial casino locations, some of which have been relying on and looking forward to the positive surge.
Throughout the entirety of the first NFL week, the four casino locations managed to attract some US$900,000 in sports wagers placed on the live football events, as well as on other sports events. What makes the surge even more evident is the comparison with the previous week, when a combined US$345,000 was generated by the four commercial casinos. Nearly tripling the amount generated has been a goal for quite some time.
Resorts World Catskills in Monticello, Tioga Downs Casino Resort in Nichols, del Lago Resort Casino in Waterloo, and the Rivers Casino and Resort in Schenectady were the four locations in question. They are only part of the sports wagering field of New York State, as there are 11 more tribal casino venues, some of which have already greenlighted sports wagering operation.
Casinos Welcome New Players
Commercial casino management has already expressed their thoughts on the recently commenced NFL season. Lance Young, Executive Vice President and General Manager of del Lago, stated that the venue and the sports lounge, in particular, was filled with people ready to place their wagers in a legal manner for the first time ever, while also spending quality time with their friends sharing the same passion for sports events.
Jeff Gural, Tioga Downs owner, admitted that over the days ahead of the NFL season start locals were eager to see how it would go, whereas the casino staff was preparing for the projected surge of customers and participation. Field cannibalization has been a trend evident by the lower gaming revenue ahead of sports wagering launch, but could an internal casino offerings cannibalization also exist?
Gaming tables and slot machines sprinkled across the casino floors might take a hit, now that sports wagering is a legal offering. However, for the time being, it is still too early for any projections to be made. Experts reassure the gaming community that the two offerings complete each other for a well-rounded experience.
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