Louisiana Casinos’ Revenues Rise 12.3% in August, Casinos Continue to Move Landside

Louisiana's casinos, which include riverboats and land-based casinos, generated $186.6 million in August, up 12.3% year over year from $166.1 million. 

Riverboat casinos' revenues made up the majority of the profits, accounting for $160.9 million; however, the state's lone land-based casino accounted for over 13% of the state's total. 

The rise in revenues can be attributed to casinos' move from riverboats to land after the change to state law, which only allowed casinos to operate over water. Three casinos have moved since 2022, and another will follow in December. 

Double-Digit Losses and Gains 

According to the latest report from the Louisiana State Police, of the 16 casinos in the state, five reported year-on-year losses, one reported revenue remained stable, while another reported no year-on-year change due to opening its doors in February of this year. 

The revenue leader for August was the Treasure Chest casino, with just under $14 million generated, up 12.9% from the $12.4 million in 2024. L’Auberge Baton Rouge came in close second with $13.5 million generated, up 2.5% and third place went to Margaritaville, despite it experiencing a 13.3% decline year-on-year, it still generated $12.6 million. 

Casinos with the highest year-on-year increase include the state's only registered land-based casino, Caesars New Orleans, which saw a rise of 36% from $18.9 million to $25.8 million. 

The Horseshoe Lake Charles came in second, experiencing a year-on-year increase of 32.9%, with profits rising from $5.7 million to $7.6 million. Despite bringing in the lowest revenue in the state, Belle of B.R Casino saw double-digit gains year-on-year of 21.6%, rising from $571,801 to $695,557. 

Bossier Casinos saw some of the highest year-on-year revenue declines, with Horseshoe Bossier City and Boomtown Bossier seeing 25.1% and 12.9% decreases, respectively. 

Law Change Sees Casino Industry Boom 

Since the law change in 2018, bringing riverboat casinos onto land, many casinos have made the jump, and state revenues have increased with the newly introduced casino floors. 

In December 2022, Horseshoe Lake Charles moved its casino landside after becoming damaged by Hurricane Laura, renaming itself from Isle of Capri Lake Charles. The new casino included over 1,000 slots, a poker room, hotel rooms, and a sportsbook, and its year-on-year increase of 32.9% shows the impact the move has had. 

Other casinos have since joined on land, including The Queen Baton Rouge, and Treasure Chest, which joined Horseshoe Lake Charles in experiencing increased profits in August. 

Louisiana can also expect the opening of a new casino in December, as The Belle on Baton Rouge is expected to complete its $141 million expansion on land and will rebrand as Bally’s Baton Rouge.