Casinos see turnover shrink as crisis keeps punters away
Greek casinos are suffering a decline in 2013 for the fifth consecutive year, with sources saying that total turnover at the country’s casinos dropped by 9.5 percent in the period from January to August from the same time last year, amounting to 199.3 million euros.
The total amount of bets placed also fell by 11.6 percent to reach 1.12 billion euros, while the number of punters at casinos declined 0.8 percent to reach 1,778,253.
Loutraki casino, which is proceeding with the change of its corporate identity from a consortium to a company, saw a 15.2 percent drop in turnover in the first eight months of the year, to 55.3 million euros. Bets dropped by 18 percent to 320.6 million euros, but tickets rose by 11.3 percent to reach 468,852.
The casino on Mount Parnitha, which has asked to be relocated from the mountain to a lower lying area in Attica, saw turnover fall by 1.8 percent to 61.1 million euros. Bets fell by 2.1 percent and tickets shrank by 1.3 percent year-on-year.
Rio casino, near Patra, which has also filed for relocation nearer to the national highway, saw a 13 percent turnover drop to just 9.1 million euros, while bets went down by 18.5 percent and tickets by 12.4 percent.
On Rhodes, the local casino saw a 3 percent turnover contraction to 12.8 million euros, with bets shrinking by 6.1 percent, although tickets increased by 13.9 percent.
Xanthi casino in northern Greece is set to shut down on September 24, its owners have said. However, up to end-August this year its turnover increased by 21.6 percent to reach 2.7 million euros, with bets rising by 14.7 percent and tickets growing by a notable 23 percent.
The Halkidiki casino was closed in the winter period and since it opening for the summer it has seen a 48.5 percent fall in turnover to just 1.2 million euros. Bets dropped 39.4 percent and tickets 25.4 percent.
The casino on the island of Syros, which is looking to be relocated to nearby Myconos, suffered a 17.2 percent turnover slip to 1.5 million euros, with bets falling by 23.8 percent and tickets by 16.9 percent.
Bucking the trend, Corfu casino saw an 11.5 percent increase in turnover to reach 3 million euros. Bets rose by 8.3 percent but tickets dropped by 9.6 percent.
