The state of sports betting in Las Vegas is a microcosm of the hotel and casino industry as a whole: dramatically shaken up due to the COVID-19 shutdown.
The anticipated comeback begins Thursday, June 4, when resorts can reopen as part of Nevada’s Phase 2 process. Las Vegas sportsbooks are eager to get back to full-scale business, but the sports betting scene will look very different as operators begin to reopen and lay out plans to take bets in person.
Which Las Vegas sportsbooks will reopen?
Dozens of hotel-casinos plan to reopen on June 4 and in most cases, their respective sportsbooks will reopen, as well. That includes:
• Books at the Bellagio, New York-New York and MGM Grand, as MGM Resorts – whose properties dominate the Vegas Strip – initially opens just three of those properties
• Circa Sports, downtown at The D Las Vegas and Golden Gate
• Wynn Las Vegas
• William Hill US, with all Nevada kiosk locations reopening, along with 25 full-service locations, including at least 15 in the Las Vegas area
• South Point
• All Station Casinos sportsbooks
The SuperBook at Westgate will hold off reopening retail until mid-June, when the hotel-casino is set to reopen, as well.
How will Las Vegas sportsbooks reopen?
The term “social distancing” will remain in vogue in Vegas for the foreseeable future. The final details on reopening are being worked out, but safety is the No. 1 priority followed by making guests comfortable.
“A lot of this is not finalized yet, but one of the most noticeable differences is that we’ll have a plastic partition to give some distance between the customers and the writers,” Jay Kornegay, vice president of race and sports at the SuperBook said.
Sportsbook operators pointed to several other measures being taken, including:
• Ticket writers in masks, disinfecting counter after each guest
• Allowing only every other betting window to be open
• Social distancing while in line, with marked 6-foot intervals
What will Las Vegas sportsbooks look like after reopening?
Again, social distancing is the catchphrase:
• At Wynn, seats, carrels and booths have been reconfigured to allow for appropriate physical distancing. Similar steps are in play at every other sportsbook contacted by Covers.
• Constant cleaning/disinfecting of seating and tables, as customers come and go.
“We want to make sure that people know when they come to The SuperBook, we’ve gone above and beyond to ensure their safety,” Kornegay said.
What do Las Vegas sports bettors need to know?
Many properties have safety protocols in place well before patrons reach the sportsbook. At Wynn, for example, there will be noninvasive thermal temperature checks and face coverings provided at all resort entrances. Likewise, the South Point is planning to do temperature scans.
Perhaps the biggest change that could be coming involves the daily betting sheets, a staple of the sportsbook industry for decades. These could take on a digital format or leave books directing patrons to their mobile sportsbook apps.
All that said, there is one thing that’s not going anywhere at the South Point sportsbook: the much-heralded hot dog cart, doling out frankfurters for $1.25 apiece – limit three, of course – while employing enhanced safety measures.
“As far as I know, I think the hot dog cart will be open,” sportsbook director Chris Andrews said, before later confirming that fact with South Point owner Michael Gaughan. “To tell you the truth, I can’t wait to have one myself.”
Where can I bet on sports?
Find out where to bet legally on sports in the U.S.A., how sports betting runs in each of those states, and which states will have sports betting next with our legal sports betting review and map.
