For Nebraska’s racetrack casinos, 2024 was defined by expansion.
Casinos across the state grew their spaces and the types of betting they offered. The result was the industry produced more revenue in 2024 than in its previous 1⅓ years combined, reaching about $145.7 million.
Lynne McNally, CEO of the Nebraska Horsemen’s Benevolent and Protective Association, said she attributed the growth in revenue to the casino expansions.
“The big jump is directly attributable to opening Omaha, obviously, in August and then phase two of Lincoln in November,” McNally said. “That’s where most of the revenue came from.”
McNally also said WarHorse Omaha’s second phase and the opening of a casino in Ogallala could cause the total casino revenue for the state to jump again in 2025.
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WarHorse Lincoln led Nebraska’s casinos in monthly revenue for most of the year. The casino reported total 12-month revenue of about $59.3 million and contributed $11.9 million to the state’s gaming tax revenue.
In 2023, casinos reported a gaming revenue of about $89.1 million. In 2022, when the Lincoln casino was open for less than four months and the Grand Island Casino Resort at Fonner Park was open for less than a month, total revenue was about $14 million.
Last year, WarHorse Lincoln led Nebraska’s casinos in monthly revenue for most of the year. The casino reported a total 12-month revenue of about $59.3 million and contributed $11.9 million to the state’s gaming tax revenue.
WarHorse Omaha overtook the Lincoln casino on a monthly basis in August after its grand opening. But the opening of WarHorse Lincoln’s second phase, which included table games and more slot machines, pushed the casino back to the top.
WarHorse Omaha produced total gaming revenue for the year of about $32.8 million. Grand Island Casino Resort reported about $35.3 million in gaming revenue and Harrah’s Columbus casino reported about $18.3 million.
In each case, the casinos’ revenue mainly came from slot machines, with table games the second-most profitable part of the revenue for the casinos except for WarHorse Lincoln, which reported total sports betting revenue of about $2.9 million, more than double what it made on table games.
The casinos produced about $29.1 million in gaming tax revenue in 2024, according to the commission, compared with $17.8 million in 2023.
Of that revenue, 70% goes to a state property tax relief fund. The majority of the remaining money goes to the city and county where the casinos are located.
This past year was one of the first full years of casino gambling and so showed higher tax revenue, said Casey Ricketts, the executive director of the Racing and Gaming Commission. Ricketts said WarHorse Lincoln’s second phase and WarHorse Omaha’s opening contributed to the increase.
Nebraska’s casino industry has several upcoming projects. WarHorse Lincoln is working toward its third phase and WarHorse Omaha is set to open its second phase in April, McNally said.
Additionally, a planned WarHorse casino in South Sioux City has yet to break ground, McNally said. A project in Ogallala, operated by Elite Casino Resorts, is in progress.
“We’re on a steady upward climb and will continue to do so for quite some time until all six facilities are fully built out,” McNally said.
Elite Casino Resorts has sports books at its other properties. A sports book allows people to legally bet on sporting events. In Iowa, where Elite Cason Resorts is based, the tax structure is very different for sports books, Vince Fiala said.
Reach the writer at nfranklin@journalstar.com or 402-473-7391. On Twitter @NealHFranklin
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