COVID -19 and the aftermath on online and land-based gambling in the US

It seems like yesterday that we were watching the news and the coronavirus pandemic erupted in Wuhan. China. The fact is, this was December 2019, and here we are today almost a year on, and still battling the world pandemic like an inferno of flames. Deaths recorded, businesses closing and people made redundant, this was the economic effect that the virus had, still has and will most probably keep having for years to come.

Europe is in tatters and so is the United States of America, as it has soon shifted to become one of the biggest global epicentres of the virus.

So how does this affect top casino sites and the overall gambling scene in the USA?

If you are an owner of a land based casino in the US, probability is that you might have needed to close your doors and made people redundant. As social distancing becomes part of the new norm, people will eventually stop going to land based sites and focus all of their gambling online.

Many people have lost their job, others are currently hoping to keep their job and in the meantime, everyone is trying to save money for rainy days.  Does this mean that the era of gambling both land based and online is over? No, but the revenue that the online brings to the table is only a small percentage of the massive income that land based resorts bring in. As a matter of fact, the online proposition is also not doing as good as it should, as people need the money for other essentials.

How is the Online Gambling scene in the USA doing?

The American Gaming Association mentions that if all the casinos in the USA stayed closed for business for a total of 2 whole months, a loss of 21 million US dollars will be registered.

Whilst the  USA has seen some casinos reopen their doors with many social distancing measures in place, the original number of casinos closing their doors was 94%, which quite frankly is a high number. This translates into 500,000 people either having lost their job or are currently at home waiting for the call to go back to work.

To salvage the businesses at stake, including gambling, The AGA is pleading with the US Government to get some funding and help struggling casinos. All of the 500,00 employees have a total wages of $60 billion a year, something the government cannot sustain for sure.  The economy will be impacted greatly in the process, and the tax revenue that normally such businesses generate will be a further loss for the US.

What about the Las Vegas Casinos?

We cannot talk about gambling in the USA without mentioning Sin City aka Las Vegas.   When the coronavirus appeared on the horizon to take over the US, Las Vegas closed its doors in March 2020.  Only recently some of the casinos have started opening again, albeit very cautiously.

Congress had already announced a $2 trillion relief fund to be distributed amongst all the affected businesses.  Will this all go to the casinos in Sin City?  Not all, but a good chunk of it will. To be precise $454 billion will get directly located to Vegas. Many have raised the issues that this amount of money that was allocated will not be fully available to sustain all the Nevada gambling sites.  Will they survive or will this be the end of an era for Vegas?

How about the Ohio gambling scene?

Not as popular and big as the Vegas gambling vibes, but Ohio has always been a gambling powerhouse. But what is left of this following the coronavirus outbreak?  The scene is relatively new compared to Vegas and in 2012 and 2013, land based casinos opened their doors in Cleveland, Cincinnati. Columbus and Toledo.  Truth is, with a world pandemic looming around us, everyone suffered, including the Ohio gambling scene.

Will the support of the government be enough for these companies to survive and hopefully make a comeback in the near future?  Many people are now registered and already enjoying their gambling online as opposed to land based, and even if casinos were to open again, gamblers will be somehow cautious about going back to land based. Top casino sites, the online ones grant you bonuses, ongoing promotions and even a loyalty program for always choosing them. Punters love a good old bonus, and this could see the demise of land based casino gambling in the US. In the meantime, Ohio and most of the Vegas casinos remain closed.

Casinos are not just gambling hubs with cocktails and gambling tables

If you thought that only dealers are losing their jobs in this world pandemic, think again.  Casinos in the US normally have resorts, and they have events where people attend to spend a week gambling, relaxing and just having a jolly good time.  When the casinos closed their doors, all the staff lost their jobs, not just the dealers. The American Association for Hotels estimates that around 4 million people have lost their job in the process.

Apart from the loss of business and revenue, many casinos might open but with the loss of employees.  Nobody will sit around waiting for the call to go back to work. People need to eat and support their own.  Apart from this, all the Vegas rooms generate a total of $500 million per day and $3.5 billion per week.

As the US saw growing coronavirus numbers, Atlantic City also closed down its doors eventually and stopped taking online bookings and had to deal with the ample guest cancellations that followed.

Will the Government state funding be enough to save the casino industry?

Top casino sites in the US depend on state funding to help them keep afloat and not close down their doors for good.  Yet, will this be enough to salvage the whole casino industry?

Some people state it will, others say it will not.  Who knows.

If we had to be brutally honest , the coronavirus pandemic hit us all like a thunderbolt and the waves of its impact is being felt everywhere and in any sector that you can ever imagine.  Casinos too have been impacted, very badly.

All industries have seen a tremendous domino effect with massive lockdown experienced worldwide. Casinos, cars, concerts, conferences, hotels, sporting events, cafes and even restaurants.  People just do not have that extra disposable income to use in times like these, and tomorrow even the most stable of jobs could close.   And the ones who have money, do not have the places to spend them, as cities and countries morph into ghost towns everywhere.

Whilst many argue that the gambling business should get any bailout relief and funding, the truth is, every business should get a portion of the cake, as every worker needs to feed the people living under their roof. A study has shown that in the US, 20% of workers have lost their job either temporarily or permanently.  These people might have savings and might have not, but they all deserve some sort of funding to help them cope with this economic crisis.  Poverty is looming around us all, and it is high time that people recognise that everyone needs assistance.

As we currently bring you this review and detailed analysis of the economic state that the US is in, medicine is at the forefront of needing funding. Having insurance or not, one needs to get medical assistance, and a portion of the top casino sites should be directed there. The police, frontliners and anyone who is currently fighting this pandemic also deserve the highest recognition and funding.  Who will the biggest portion of money go to is another story …and that is something that the Trump Administration needs to decide quickly prior to the November election.

Everyone gets a slice of the cake …

All businesses, big and small should get funding to help them in this world pandemic.  If we have to be honest we would definitely say that land based casinos should use the funding to focus on transitioning into top casinos sites.

Will this be the end for the gambling era and party city of Vegas and beyond?  Most probably not, but we will reap the effects of this virus for years to come. The worldwide economy is in shambles and the world is currently struggling to keep afloat medically and economically.  As world leaders strive to find a balance between health and economic growth, we urge you to keep hoping that this is all over soon.

In terms of business, it is survival of the fittest, and hoping that gambling will survive and flourish in the years to come.