Las Vegas Sands Mulling $6B New York Casino due to Legal iGaming

Las Vegas Sands CEO Robert Goldstein revealed in a recent earnings call that the company is weighing the impact of the potential legalization of online casinos in New York on its plans to move forward with a $6 billion casino project on Long Island.

Goldstein hinted that if online casino gambling is legalized, it could shift the company’s investment focus toward another U.S. state altogether.

The push for online gambling has gained traction in New York, thanks to Senator Joe Addabbo’s introduction of bill S8185 to the 2024 legislature. This new proposal features the same 30.5% tax rate as the failed 2023 casino bill, but introduces a $25 million fund dedicated to supporting union works. Additionally, it allocates $11 million for problem gambling funding and opens the door for up to 31 online casino skins.

Goldstein pointed to the examples of New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Michigan, states where online casino gaming is already legal, suggesting that online casino earnings may soon surpass those of land-based casinos. This certainly isn’t the case yet.

For example, in Pennsylvania this September, online slots posted revenues of more than $132 million, compared to the more than $196 million collected by retail slots. Meanwhile, online table games posted revenues of over $42 million, compared to more than $73 million in retail table game revenues. 

However, it’s worth noting that while Pennsylvania gaming revenues increased by 6.17% year-on-year in September, including verticals like sports betting and iGaming, retail slots and table games saw revenues decrease year-on-year by 1.48% and 2.33%, respectively. 

Las Vegas Sands outlines future plans despite poor Q3

Goldstein’s comments came amid Las Vegas Sands releasing its financial details for Q3 2024, showing a 4.3% decline in revenues year-on-year. Consolidated adjusted property EBITDA also fell by 11.5% to $991 million. However, the EBITDA drops were attributed to poor holds in Singapore and Macau properties.

“Although our reported financial results for the quarter reflected lower than expected hold in Singapore and the impact of disruption from our ongoing development work at the Londoner in Macau, we continued to execute our strategic objectives during the quarter,” Goldstein explained. “We remain enthusiastic about our opportunities to deliver industry-leading growth in both markets in the years ahead as we execute our capital investment programs in both Macau and Singapore.”

Despite these doubts, Goldstein reaffirmed that Las Vegas Sands is progressing with its application to construct a casino and resort near the Nassau Coliseum. The process to get a casino license approved has been long for Golden Sands Vegas, with the company earning local approval from the Nassau County Legislature Rules Committee in July. 

Goldstein also revealed that the New York State Gaming Commission has changed its timescales for new casino license applications. The commission now requests all applications by spring 2025. The commission will then decide which casino applications to approve in early 2026. Previously, Goldstein thought the application process would be complete by late 2025. 

The delay occurred while Governor Kathy Hochul was refraining from endorsing or condemning S9673A, which was designed to speed up the casino application process. The bill remains unsigned despite getting approval from lawmakers in June.  

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