Detroit Casino Revenue Shows Slight Increases Across the Board

Revenue news for Michigan’s three commercial casinos is better in July compared to June.

Unlike last month’s revenue report, the figures released by The Michigan Gaming Control Board (MGCB) show an increase in both the month-over-month and year-over-year numbers.

The combined casino revenue for July was $119.3 million.

That figure represents a 0.2 percent increase when compared to June 2018 and 0.3 percent increase when compared to July 2017.

Those numbers represent relatively flat growth, but any number in the black is good news considering the casinos posted a year-over-year decline last month.

July 2018 Detroit casino revenue summary

Every month, the MGCB collects data from Detroit’s three casinos:

• MGM Grand Detroit
• MotorCity Casino Hotel
• Greektown Casino Hotel

MGM continues to lead the pack, although it gave up a little bit of ground to MotorCity, which remains solidly in second-place.

MGM posted $50.9 million in revenue for the month. That number represents a 0.5 percent increase compared to July 2017.

MotorCity Casino brought in $40.6 million in July, which represents a slight increase of 0.3 percent compared to July 2017.

Greektown Casino Hotel enjoys the most substantial year-over-year increase of the bunch. It registered a revenue figure of $27.8 million, for a 1.8 percent increase over July 2017.

Up and down casino trends

Looking at the trend lines, MGM and Motor City are both showing positive trends, although MGM’s trend line shows a slight downward tick compared to last month. Greektown is still showing a slightly declining trend but saw a small upward tick compared to the previous month.

Compared to last month, MGM’s market share fell one percent. Motor City was the beneficiary.

Based on July’s revenue figures, MGM claims 43 percent of the market share. MotorCity now claims 34 percent, while Greektown remains steady with 23 percent.

Outpacing last year, for now

Except for the first two months of the year, revenue for 2018 has continued to outpace last year.

Even with this month’s relatively flat figures, the Detroit commercial casinos are still showing a slight upward trend for the year.

The rest of the year historically produces some of the lowest revenue. For instance, Aug. 2017 recorded the lowest figure of the year at $111.4 million.

It’s true that an increase is always positive news, but this month’s numbers may be the first sign that the beginning of the “off-season” is here.

Hopefully, March’s record revenue will help offset the anticipated drop.

State and city wagering taxes

The three casinos paid a total of $23.9 million in taxes for July.

The state receives 8.1 percent of the casinos’ net win, and the city gets 10.9 percent. Based on those percentages, $14.2 million went to the city of Detroit, and $9.7 million went to the state of Michigan.

According to the MGCB, the state’s portion of the wagering taxes goes to the School Aid Fund. The fund is used to aid school districts, higher education and school employee’s retirement systems. The wagering taxes, however, are specifically for the support of statewide K-12 classroom education.

The city’s portion of the wagering taxes supports programs and services that enhance the quality of life for Detroit citizens. Specifically, the fees provide additional public safety programs, tax relief and infrastructure improvements.

The bottom line

It’s true that both the month-over-month and year-over-year figures were basically flat for July. Even so, a slight increase is still positive news, especially coming off last month’s decline. It is even more critical as the casinos head into what is historically the slowest time of the year.

Even with the less than stellar results, the casinos are on track to end the year with a new revenue record.

Next month will be the key, though. Last year there was over a $7 million drop in revenue between July and August. Inevitably, there will be a decrease in revenue, but hopefully, the decline is less severe.