Last fall in a policy address, Macau Chief Executive Ho Iat Seng shared his vision for the Chinese special administrative region as a “city of performing arts,” supported by billions in non-gaming investment by the city’s six gaming concessionaires.
“Macau hosts various large-scale entertainment events,” said Ho, “and both in terms of quantity and quality, it leads the neighboring regions.”
According to Inside Asian Gaming, Macau’s “concert economy” has taken off since the city reopened to travel in January 2023. IAG attributes the surge to “the non-gaming investment initiatives from the six concessionaires.”
As a condition of their new 10-year gaming concession contracts, the operators agreed to invest a total of MOP$108.8 billion (US$13.5 billion) in non-gaming projects through 2030. Entertainment is one of 11 investment categories named by the government.
“The concert market in Macau has rapidly rebounded after the pandemic, already surpassing the 2019 level,” said Alex Lou, executive director of Chessman Entertainment & Production. “In 2023, Macau hosted approximately 240 popular concerts, representing a threefold increase compared to previous years. Among these, 57 concerts were priced at over MOP$1,999 (US$248), and there were also eight music festivals of varying scales held in Macau.”
Lou told IAG, “We believe that increasing non-gaming investments in integrated resorts will have a significant and positive impact on Macau’s performance industry. The investment by concessionaires complements the industry’s growth.”
At the Macau Gaming Show last year, Buddy Lam, executive vice president of public relations for Galaxy Entertainment Group, said the return on non-gaming investment “may not be exceptionally high, but they drive foot traffic, consumption and even gaming revenue.”
An unnamed industry “scholar” agreed, telling IAG, “For concessionaires, the primary consideration isn’t whether concerts themselves are profitable; it’s about how much foot traffic they can attract. Concessionaires have concert venues capable of drawing large crowds. Their focus is on foot traffic.
“It’s akin to a promotional event—combining hotel rooms with concert tickets becomes an attractive package for drawing customers. Additionally, some ticket sales are directed back to high-end clients, effectively serving as a means to attract them.”
For example, when June Hong Kong singer Jacky Cheung performed at the Venetian Macao last summer, ticket revenue alone was more than US$12.4 million, and Sands China’s share of the premium mass market rose 14 percentage points to 37 percent for the month.
What Macau lacks is a large-scale stadium or concert hall. “Taylor Swift’s recent global tour in Asia selected venues such as the Tokyo Dome, which can accommodate 55,000 people, and the Singapore National Stadium,” said Osborn Lo, president of the Macau Federal Commercial Association of Convention & Exhibition Industry. The Macau Jockey Club, which closed as a race course on April 1, has been pegged as a possible performance arena.
“The land area is substantial and can be developed for various purposes, including concerts,” Lawrence Ho, chairman and CEO of Melco Resorts & Entertainment, told IAG. “If the (Macau) government has a development plan for the land and invites us to participate, we will respond positively.”
Other options include the Macau East Asian Games Dome, which now holds 9,000 people, but could be redeveloped to accommodate an audience of 50,000.
“If Macau aims to be the ‘city of performing arts,’ it must seek out locations to construct more large-scale performance venues, improve transportation around these facilities, and even establish coordinated transportation between entry ports and venues,” Lo told IAG. “These steps will be essential for long-term development in the future.”
