Gambling platforms in Mississippi are in a bid to make more money this year than they did before the Coronavirus pandemic in 2019. According to statistics posted on the Mississippi Today website, Mississippi has already collected $1.1 billion in the first five months of 2021. In 2019, the state collected $2.2 billion for the whole year.
The 2020’s revenue was short of that of 2019 with 200 million. This was due to several months of lockdown to restrict the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic. With 2021’s revenue numbers, all gambling platforms in Mississippi are on a quest to set a revenue record reflecting the 1990s, when brick-and-mortar gaming properties were legalized in the state.
Mississippi has 26 commercial casinos. Eight of these are situated in the Biloxi area, while the other twelve stand along the Gulf Coast.
According to Keith Crosby, the high revenue collection is due to most businesses closing. Keith was talking to Mississippi Today, noting that fewer businesses are offering non-essential services. According to Keith, this creates less competition for people wanting to spend discretionary dollars.
The general manager of the Palace Casino in Biloxi also told Mississippi Today that the casino industry had put every measure to ensure it bounces back to business. With top-notch measures to deal with the Coronavirus, the casino industry provides a safe environment for residents to go and enjoy gambling without contracting COVID-19.
Reasons for Increased Revenue Collection
Various states across the USA are slowly returning to normal, and Mississippi is among these states. Thus, more tourists are showing up in the state. With increased tourists comes increased gaming wins for the state.
As more people are getting the vaccine against the Coronavirus, there has been an increase in the need to travel. According to Coastal Mississippi’s director of marketing for tourism, the number of those visiting the state this year is higher than it has been in the past few years.
Karen Conner also said that the high number of visitors serves as a benchmark for the state’s economic recovery. The chairperson for the House Gaming Committee, Casey Eure, also noted that the return of sports events is reviving casinos.
What’s more, the revenue is bound to increase with the National Football League season kicking off soon. As a nationally recognized league, the NFL attracts high numbers of bettors, which will result in increased gaming revenue.
For a Mississippi resident to bet on sports, they must be on-site in one of the land-based casinos in the state. Bettors cannot bet over the internet, even on live sports.
Yet, mobile sports betting is allowed in two states bordering Mississippi. Louisiana is yet to start offering mobile betting, but it is already legalized. As for Tennessee, players can bet on sports over mobile devices.
The Need for More Staff
Although the casino business is picking up, most casinos are understaffed. For example, the Beau Ravage had 100 positions as of last week. The casino carried out a job fair in May and hired 120 employees out of 300 who attended the interview.
Other casinos are also doing everything to attract qualified employees. Some are even raising wages. The issue of lack of staff is felt across the country. In Arkansas, one casino hired interviewed employees on the spot to fill available positions.
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