A report by the Spectrum Gaming Group, commissioned by the state of Louisiana, shows the Shreveport-Bossier gaming industry faces several challenges.
Spectrum Executive Vice President Joseph Weinert said, “Performance has stagnated for about the last decade. The Shreveport-Bossier City market has been hit hard by Indian gaming. The casinos in Oklahoma pay a lower effective tax rate then do the Louisiana boats and as such they’re able to reinvest that money into their facilities and marketing programs that make them popular with Texans.”
Louisiana Gaming Control Board Chairman Ronnie Jones concurred. “No one could have predicted when all the casinos were placed here in Bossier City and Shreveport that there would be such an explosion of growth in the tribal gaming market.” Margaritaville Resort Casino Senior Vice President and General Manager Barry Regula added, “The market revenues for Shreveport-Bossier are down around 25 percent since the inception of Native American gaming. So we need to do something to remain competitive.”
The Spectrum study offers several recommendations—including allowing riverboats to relocate, which would require legislative approval. Weinert said, “One of our recommendations was that the state allow for the relocation of riverboats. Particularly, one to the north shore area of Lake Pontchartrain and another to the northeast region of Louisiana. Those are markets that do not currently have gaming but could support it. When you have fewer operators competing for the same-size pie, so to speak, they are likely to be healthier operators and that’s a good thing for the host city, for the employees and for the state.”
Jones agreed, noting, “If this market is going to survive, if Shreveport and Bossier are going to prosper in terms of gaming in the future, I think it’s that at least one perhaps two properties locate somewhere else in the state.”
However, recalling Diamond Jacks’ attempted move to Tangipahoa Parish in 2017, legislative approval could be difficult.
Jones also cited El Dorado’s purchase of Caesars Entertainment for $8.5 billion. “We don’t know if the Federal Trade Commission is going to permit them to keep three casinos in the Shreveport-Bossier City area. If history is any indication, they will likely ask them to divest one or more of those properties,” Jones said.
Weinert noted, “The issues of economic concentration tend to arise in gaming markets where you do have one operator who has a dominant position. I’m sure the Louisiana regulators will look at that closely. It’s possible that, which is the case in Atlantic City, the company may have to dispose of one or more of its assets.”
Ultimately, however, “Unless there’s some policy changes which make these casinos more competitive, we haven’t hit bottom yet,” Jones pointed out.
The Spectrum Group report also recommended that the state strongly consider approving sports betting, which has been successful in Mississippi. The report noted, with a large gaming industry already established in Louisiana, adding sports betting to the mix make sense.
