\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\nVideo gaming machines in restaurants, racetracks, truck stops, and other locations lost $76.5 million through November 2020. This is a 13.2 percent drop from the previous year.<\/p>\n
Thousands Out of Work<\/h2>\n
The job-loss totals also have been gloomy.<\/p>\n
At the Horseshoe in Bossier City, 978 employees were laid off in the spring, according to the Daily Advertiser<\/i>. Bossier City is in the northwestern corner of the state, across the Red River from Shreveport. Other properties in the area also laid off workers.<\/p>\n\n
In the southern part of the state, L\u2019<\/span>Auberge Casino Resort in storm-weary Lake Charles laid off 441 workers. The Isle of Capri in Lake Charles is expected to furlough 336 workers on Feb. 1.<\/p>\n<\/div>\nTwo horse tracks in that region went through job losses last year. Delta Downs Racetrack Casino and Hotel in Vinton laid off 354 workers. Vinton is west of Lake Charles, near the Texas border.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\nTo the east of Lake Charles in Opelousas, Evangeline Downs Racetrack Casino laid off 246 employees in 2020.<\/p>\n
Resorts throughout the state, including the New Orleans and Baton Rouge areas, also cut back on staffing levels. In Baton Rouge, L\u2019<\/span>Auberge\u00a0Casino laid off 162 workers.<\/p>\nSports Betting’s Next Step<\/h2>\n
While the existing gaming industry struggled in 2020, voters in Louisiana opened the door to new avenues of revenue by approving sports betting in the state.<\/p>\n
In 55 of Louisiana\u2019s 64 parishes, voters in November agreed to allow sports wagering within the borders of their parish. The ballot item passed overwhelmingly in the parishes where large cities, including\u00a0 New Orleans and Baton Rouge, are located.<\/p>\n
When the state Legislature meets in April, lawmakers must decide whether to allow gamblers to place sports bets on mobile devices<\/a> or only in-person at a sportsbook inside a casino.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\nWith this and other issues still to be resolved, legal sports betting is not expected to be up and running in Louisiana until 2022.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Slammed by hurricanes and COVID-19, the Louisiana gaming industry lost nearly a billion dollars in 2020 compared to the previous year. The industry also shed thousands of jobs. Through November 2020, gaming revenue was down more than $830 million statewide compared to the same period the previous year, according to the Daily Advertiser newspaper in […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":55,"featured_media":161500,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n
Revenue Slump, Layoffs Mark Difficult Year for Louisiana Gaming Industry - Casino.org Revenue Slump, Layoffs Mark Difficult Year for Louisiana Gaming Industry<\/title>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\n\n\n\n\n\t\n\t\n\t\n