Nevada casinos win $11 billion in 2014, a slight drop from 2013

Gamblers play roulette at the Eastside Cannery on Boulder Highway in this file photo.

Nevada’s gaming revenue declined slightly in 2014 after several years of consistent increases, the state reported today.

The Gaming Control Board said casinos won a little more than $11 billion in 2014, a 1.1 percent drop from the year before, when gaming revenue increased by 2.6 percent. Revenue had been steadily going up for the past few years since the worst of the recession-induced slump.

The Strip’s gaming revenue dropped 2.1 percent to $6.37 billion for the year, while Clark County’s revenue went down 1.3 percent to $9.55 billion.

A lot of the reason behind the declines comes down to one word: baccarat. That game’s $1.5 billion statewide revenue was down 5.9 percent from 2013. Gaming Control Board senior research analyst Michael Lawton said the year’s drop ended five straight years of increases for baccarat revenue.

Lawton saw positive developments in slot and sports wagering revenue for the year. Slot revenue in 2014 was “basically flat” compared to 2013, and sports wagering revenue rose 11.8 percent, he said.

Things were also a little better elsewhere in Clark County. Downtown Las Vegas revenue rose 2.1 percent to $511.4 million for 2014, while Laughlin and North Las Vegas each saw increases of 1 percent and 1.9 percent, respectively.

The Boulder Strip, however, saw a 1.8 percent decline for the year.

The picture in December was worse for the state overall. Gaming revenue for the month was $950.7 million, down 8.06 percent compared to the year before. The Strip’s December gaming revenue was $555.2 million, a whopping 16.41 percent decline from 2013.

A report from Union Gaming Group today noted that the Strip’s rough December, as well as its challenging fourth quarter in general, was “largely driven by the drag of baccarat, as the market faced some its most challenging comparisons ever for baccarat play.”

Referencing the recent struggles in Macau, which had an extremely challenging year for gaming revenue, the report went on to say that “we expect other Strip operators to feel the pinch of a slowing Asian gaming business.”

Clark County’s revenue for the month dropped 9.68 percent to $833.9 million, but as with the year-end results, other parts of the county fared better than the Strip. Downtown, revenue rose 2.96 percent from the year before to $43 million. Laughlin and the Boulder Strip each saw double-digit increases of 17.84 percent and 13.28 percent, respectively. North Las Vegas gaming revenue declined 3.74 percent for the month.

The state collected $43.7 million in taxes on December’s revenue, a 22.77 percent increase from 2013.​

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