Las Vegas reopens to gambling in style
The images broadcast by CNN gave no doubt. On the streets of Las Vegas, the reopening of casinos and gambling halls was celebrated in style. It happened on the night of June 3 to 4. After a year and a half of restrictions and controversies, the quintessential gaming city hopes to wake up from its worst nightmare. Now, will Las Vegas manage to resist with its undoubted charm the unstoppable advance of online gambling? The industry is changing in the United States.
The famous fountain of the Bellagio resort once again shone in all its splendor and thus kick-started the reopening of casinos in Las Vegas. ©Michelleraponi/Pixabay
Nothing has happened here
On the street, as if it were the end of the year celebrations, without masks or any distance, so he partied in style in Las Vegas the reopening of the casinos on the night of the 3rd to the 4th of June if we are to give credit to the images broadcast by CNN . The famous Bellagio fountain was back in operation joining the widespread euphoria.
After Nevada Governor Steve Sisolak had set himself the goal of June 1 as the date for the complete reopening of businesses in the state and the repeal of restrictions related to the health emergency, it was eagerly awaited back to normal at the Strip casinos .
In March 2020, Las Vegas lowered the curtain in an effort to curb COVID-19 infections, which at that time were skyrocketing throughout the state. Although the emergency situation was serious, restaurants opened in May at 50% of their capacity, while casinos had to wait until June to open their doors, also at 50% and with extreme sanitary measures such as the reduction of tables, mandatory distance in slot machines and protective screens between players and dealers. In November, the capacity was reduced to 25% with the uptick in infections, and it was gradually increased again during the following months: to 35% in February and to 50% in March.
The hope is placed on mass vaccination, which in the United States has already reached 42% of the population, exceeding 50% also considering those who have received at least one dose, according to data from the web ourworldindata . Health officials also expect that tourists and players respect the distance measures and continue to wear masks . Meanwhile, in Las Vegas casinos have already begun to remove the protective screens on the gaming tables.
An economy in dire need of stimulus
Officials in Las Vegas are eager to recover the thousands of visitors, and bookings , which were usually brought by conventions and trade fairs, one of the most important businesses in the city that contributed 11 billion dollars in 2019. Premium, World of Concrete , which expects tens of thousands of visitors is scheduled for this week.
In March 2020 the unemployment rate stood in Las Vegas at 7% , which corresponded to the pre-pandemic rate. By April it had reached 33%. Layoffs and ERTE followed one another in the businesses of the Strip affecting a working population that is mostly of Latino origin.
For the consortium MGM Resorts lost 18,000 jobs , at the same time that its online betting subsidiary BetMGM, which has entered into agreements with Entain (bwin), has become the brand leader in the North American online betting market , where the state of New Jersey has displaced Nevada with legislation more in line with the times.
The gaming industry is being restructured in the United States
The gaming industry is displacing the online world in the United States , and it does so very quickly after the Supreme Court lifted the ban on electronic betting in 2018. It is no less symptomatic that the current legislation in the state of Nevada does not allow online casino games , even though you have enabled poker and sports betting.
The legislation has allowed many states, such as Tennessee, that lack physical betting shops and gambling halls, to now offer online betting. It is a very significant change, and it can transform the entire industry. It is estimated that the largest regulated online gambling market is currently New Jersey, whose value would be around 225 million dollars a year .
It is not surprising that large international corporations with great experience in online gambling and betting such as William Hill, Entain, Flutter or Betway they have rushed to close agreements with North American operators to start the American adventure. Meanwhile, physical casino giants such as Sands would have already sold his properties in Las Vegas and recognized that the future of gambling is in Asia, specifically, in Macau.
