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DES MOINES According to newly released state data, gaming revenue across the state decreased for the third year in a row during the most recent state budget year.
According to a prominent industry spokesperson, several of the 19 state-licensed casinos in Iowa are concerned about that and other pressures on the gaming sector.
Although the state gaming environment is slightly declining but still surpasses pre-pandemic levels, executives with the Cedar Crossing Casino and Entertainment Center, which is set to open in Cedar Rapids on New Year’s Eve of 2026, are still hopeful about launching into it.
The Iowa Racing and Gaming Commission, the state agency in charge of overseeing gaming in Iowa, recently released data showing that the 19 state-licensed casinos in Iowa—Cedar Crossing will be the 20th when it opens—collected $1.679 billion in total adjusted revenue in the state fiscal year that concluded on June 30.
This is the third consecutive year that Iowa’s total gaming revenue has decreased year over year, and it is down 2.6% from the previous state budget year.
Statewide gaming income is still 15.2 percent higher than it was prior to the pandemic, though. The total adjusted revenue generated by the casinos in the 2019 state budget year was $1.457 billion. This was the final year of consistent increase before the numbers fell during the epidemic and subsequently rose in the first year after the casinos reopened.
The state’s gaming revenue skyrocketed in the following years, reaching a peak of $1.766 billion in the 2022 state budget year after plummeting to $1.163 billion in the 2020 state budget year.
Sports betting in Iowa is not included in the figures; they are just for casino gaming.
The Iowa Gaming Association’s president and CEO, Mary Earnhardt, stated that even though overall revenue has decreased over the last three years, the fact that it is still higher than it was before the epidemic indicates that the state’s gaming sector is doing well.
As Earnhardt responded to inquiries from The Gazette via email, “What we are seeing is very much in line with what has been described over the past couple of years as a rightsizing after the unprecedented spike in gaming revenue that followed the pandemic.” Although revenues have somewhat decreased since the 2022 state budget year, they are still far more than they were before to the epidemic, demonstrating the durability and robustness of Iowa’s gaming sector.
Additionally, during the just ended state budget year, casino admissions decreased 2.1 percent statewide. Additionally, the casino industry’s contribution to state tax revenue decreased by 5%.
The Q Casino in Dubuque, which is now undergoing a multi-year, $83 million expansion and refurbishment project, defied statewide trends by seeing a 14.6 percent gain in admissions and a 5.2 percent increase in revenue in the just finished state budget year.
Cedar Crossing officials remain optimistic
Additionally, gaming revenues remained significantly higher than they were before to the epidemic, according to Kim Pang, vice president of development for Peninsula Pacific, the parent company of the Cedar Crossing Casino. Additionally, he mentioned that Cedar Crossing is expected to boost Iowa’s gaming earnings.
Ultimately, we believe that by establishing Cedar Crossing, we benefit the state of Iowa, Pang stated. We think Iowa is still in its growing period.
According to two market studies released in January that were commissioned by the Iowa Racing and Gaming Association, the Cedar Crossing Casino is expected to generate between $50 million and $60 million more in total state gaming income.
According to Pang, we think Cedar Crossing will increase revenue for the state of Iowa, perhaps not compensating for the losses on the Western Iowa side. That is Cedar Crossing’s effect.
According to both market assessments, some gaming from other Iowa casinos will be displaced by the new casino in Cedar Rapids.
According to Earnhardt, there is cause for concern since the gaming business is being impacted by demand from neighboring states while Iowa’s population is constant.
Nebraska casinos having an impact
The impact of new casinos has already been felt by Iowan casino owners in neighboring Nebraska, where gaming was just allowed.
In the recently ended state budget year, the Council Bluffs casinos experienced some of the biggest drops in revenue: Council Bluffs Horseshoe Casino’s revenue dropped 4.5 percent, and Harrah’s Council Bluffs Casino & Hotel’s revenue dropped 6 percent.
Earnhardt also pointed out that the entire revenue from gaming is being impacted by economic forces like inflation.
Nonetheless, she noted that Iowa’s casino sector is still doing well, with steady visitor numbers, robust growth in sports betting, and large capital reinvestment in locations throughout the state. We see this as a sign of stabilization rather than a contraction, and as a normal part of the lifespan of an established and properly regulated sector.
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