Hitting The Jackpot: Pollstar’s 2025 Casino Survey

The casino sector appears strong. Bookings remain steady year-over-year, but ticket sales have begun to slow in some cases. Pollstar reached out to some of the casino business’ top executives to learn more about their biggest jackpots, how casino shows might differ from other dates, the state of the casino business and more.

Participants
Andrew “Silent Assassin” Blank
Casinos Director
C3 Presents
Biggest Jackpot: Confirming Bruno Mars at Caesars Windsor when he was first breaking through is probably my biggest “jackpot” moment.

Thomas “Moho” Cantone
President, Sports & Entertainment
Mohegan Properties
Biggest Jackpot: Billy Joel.

Joe “Miami Joe” Grossman
Agent,
UTA
Biggest Jackpot: My biggest jackpot happened recently when the Florida Panthers won back-to-back Stanley Cups. Thank you Seminole Hard Rock for the great odds!

Kell Houston
Owner/President
Houston Productions
Biggest Jackpot: Video poker royal flush years ago
in Las Vegas.

Kevin Kastrup
SVP Casinos/Performing Arts Centers
Wasserman Music

Joe “Big Joe” Moallempour
Senior National Casino Talent Buyer
DWP Talent Services, LLC

Beth Nephew
VP of Marketing Operations
Seneca Gaming Corporation

Kelly “The Kells” Paolino
Event Services Manager
Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa
Biggest Jackpot: Getting to do something I genuinely enjoy for a living.

Christian Printup
Vice President of Entertainment
Foxwoods Resort Casino

Andrew “Drewser” Saunders
Vice President of Entertainment
Hard Rock International and Seminole Gaming
Biggest Jackpot: Getting introduced to Keith Sheldon by Rich Schaefer in 2020.

How do you view the overall state of live entertainment at casino venues this year?
Andrew Blank: Honestly, it’s the best year we’ve ever had at our casino venues across North America. We’re booking bigger artists, selling more tickets, and just seeing a lot of momentum overall. A huge part of that is the people we work with – our casino partners are dialed in. They know how important entertainment is to their business, and they’re not afraid to take chances or try new things. That has helped give us the confidence to take financial risk on shows at casinos from our end, too. There’s a real sense of trust and excitement right now.

Joe Grossman: 2025 will be UTA comedy’s best year ever. Booking comedy at casinos continues to grow at an incredible rate. I’ve heard some buyers complain about soft ticket sales in other genres [but] comedy has not felt that. I believe it is a testament to the strength of live comedy and UTA’s roster of incredible comedians. UTA comedy is still very much in growth mode.

Kell Houston: It’s a challenge to find new artists that can actually sell tickets. The old mainstream artists have been through the country over and over. The younger casino demo wants newer artists. Live entertainment at your casino needs creativity and a strong social media presence. Understanding that, there is a lot of competition for [fans’] wallets these days and there are so many choices for your customer. Creating a solid entertainment program with an identity that your customer can trust, is mandatory.

Beth Nephew: Overall, the state of live entertainment is strong and has the ability to reach a variety of audiences. Casino guests are, of course, the primary focus, however a strong and diversified live entertainment program has the ability to reach new and younger audiences. Introducing the casino to new markets with targeted programming can help create increased awareness and engagement with key groups. Entertainment is a key component of the guest experience and an important part of our business. It drives revenue through ticket sales, provides gaming lift to casinos floors, and supporting overall property revenues.

Christian Printup: Overall, we’re feeling the effects of the macro-economic conditions in North America in that, ticket sales trends are slower versus last year.

What is the show count like this year compared to typical years, and why? Are the bulk of your casino shows on part of tours or special events / regional plays?
Blank: We’re up about 30 percent in terms of show volume this year, which is a big jump. A lot of that is driven by how much more comfortable artists have become with playing casino venues. These aren’t just one-off, off-night plays anymore, they’re being built into real tour plans. Most of the shows we’re booking are part of larger tour routes, but we’re still doing plenty of weekend runs or one-offs where it makes sense. In some cases, we’re even helping route runs across multiple casino properties we work with, both regionally and nationally.

Thomas Cantone: Mohegan Sun Arena is a Live Nation venue so we do get national tours because of it. However, they are not enough, and we supplement with our own bookings both sports and entertainment events. We follow social media sensations that are up and comers and include them into our programming rotation. This summer at Mohegan Sun, we launched our most aggressive and diverse entertainment program of 268 shows in 70 days from our five venues: Mohegan Sun Arena, Wolf Den, The Cab Theater, Comix Roadhouse and our newest venue, Sun Patio Concert Series.

Houston: Show ticket sales are soft and the casino customer is much more picky. Casinos have to look for quality over quantity. For the bigger shows it’s necessary to be flexible on the days of the week you have shows. Most of the time the right act is routed and you really have to take what day is available.

Kevin Kastrup: The show counts for the last few years have remained pretty consistent. Most of the casino shows we have booked in the last few years are built into artists’ touring, rather than being isolated, one-off bookings. The rising cost of, well, everything has made it less cost-effective for artists to fly in for one casino show on a weekend and then fly back home. But with a network of hundreds of venues across North America, we have a lot to offer artists who need to fill holes in their tour routing.

Joe Moallempour: Our show counts are almost the same as 2024; we had some properties do fewer shows this year because of economic concerns, but the majority of those shows that were booked for them are successes. We create our own routing with our partners as well as our festivals and get routing from tours when possible. One-off events with artists come at an increased fee, which we try to avoid when we can. For special requests, we try to route with our partner venues first and then route with other buyers that we have a positive relationship with.

Printup: We’re running pretty much the same number of shows year over year, but we are finding that sales are trending slower for some acts year over year.

Andrew Saunders: Show count was similar to what we saw in 2023 and 2024 across our network – some properties aim for 50 shows and some aim for 150 shows and we were able to hit all of the goals that we set out to achieve. We see a mix of touring and more fly-date business – some properties are able to be the “arena play” and participate in a tour, whereas others are better suited for the off-cycle one-off. … Ultimately the fan doesn’t decide whether or not to come see their favorite artist based on which cycle they are on, and neither do we.

How do “casino shows” different from shows at other venues, and what are the pros and cons of casino shows in particular?
Blank: That gap has really narrowed. Five or 10 years ago, maybe there was a clear difference between a “casino show” and a typical tour stop. But now? Not so much. The production is solid, the crowds are strong, and the casino amenities all add to the experience for both artists and fans.

Kastrup: Well, for one thing, artists and their touring party are normally provided with hotel rooms and meals for the duration of their stay, which is often a welcome change from the norm, and takes a little pressure off their weekly budgets. In the last few years, more casinos are building actual concert venues with top-of-the-line equipment, green rooms, and production crews. They offer fans options for dining, recreational gaming, and entertainment all in one location.

Moallempour: Casino shows attract a variety of demographics and patrons from outside of the immediate market. We don’t see any downside to this. In fact, we see many upsides for artists to add casinos to their touring strategy. Casinos can be strategic “underplays,” and they can also be a great way to connect routing because the casinos will offer rooms and hospitality for multiple-night stays. Artists can also enjoy comped amenities, such as golf, meals, and spa facilities. Those are bonuses that other venues, such as amphitheaters and arenas, do not and cannot offer.

Printup: They do not differ for us operationally. I think for the artists a casino show can be a better experience, because casinos have more amenities than a traditional arena or theater. We can offer the artists and their teams a much better experience.

What types of shows make sense in your venues and why? Are any new trends emerging?
Blank: We’re seeing a little bit of everything, to be honest. There’s no genre or format we’re not willing to explore with our casino partners. I wouldn’t say there’s been one huge trend, but we’re definitely seeing some creative pairing and packaging. Shows like Dave Chappelle and Killer Mike performing together, or ZZ Top and The Wallflowers. You’ve also got Counting Crows out with Gaslight Anthem, and Halestorm teaming up with Lindsey Stirling. Those kinds of pairings are really unique and exciting for fans. Female artists, in particular, continue to overdeliver across a bunch of formats. And comedy, country, and even podcasts are all still crushing it. The appetite for live entertainment is strong across the board.

Cantone: We have been very successful with our focus on the new trend of younger artists, many making their arena or casino debuts [such as Lainey Wilson, Matt Rife, Tate McRae and Shane Gillis. And I often do multiple property deals to leverage our buying power.

Houston: Depending on your region, Latino shows are doing very well in the Southwest regions of the country. Old school rap is now very popular as well as reggae. Casinos are trying to catch up to the younger demo and the more current artists touring. Young country does very well if you can stay ahead of their growth curve and pricing. Game shows work well and casinos need to think outside the box and try new ideas.

Moallempour: First and foremost, we are very much aligned with our casino partners on the audience they want to attract. One of the most important components to focus on is acts that appeal to “gamers,” a.k.a. frequent casino players, and acts that will attract a new generation of gamers. Entertainment is an excellent way to attract new gamers and to build customer loyalty and trust with casinos. We analyze the data from the casino, like how the drop count has performed when certain types of acts are playing at the property and combine that with regional audience consumption data to see how artists are trending. Additionally, the casinos market and book the talent respectively based on what works within that market; it’s not a one-size fits all.

Saunders: At Hard Rock we like to say that we have a stage for every artist … from The Rolling Stones and Post Malone to your favorite local band. We generally don’t stray from what an arena or theater would book because we are a brand based on music and entertainment so we want to offer something that appeals to fans from all walks of life. The only trend that I can call out across our entire network is that artists are continuing to bubble up faster and faster. First it was true of pop and rock artists, and now it’s true of comedians, country, alternative, hip-hop. … Now there’s not a genre that isn’t moving at the speed of the internet.

What are your biggest challenges this year in the Casino space?
Blank: Availability. That’s really the biggest thing. The venues we work with are busy, like, really busy. We’re basically done booking 2025 already, and we’ve been focused on 2026 routing since the beginning of June. It’s a good problem to have, but we’re definitely having to turn away some shows we’d love to book, just because there aren’t enough weekends on the calendar.

Cantone: Everyone needs to be aware of high ticket pricing and overpaying. Sometimes casinos are pitched with higher guarantees and that only creates higher ticket prices and in this economy today that is a challenge. Just like stand-alone venues, casino venues have way more expenses and overhead as part of a larger enterprise.

Grossman: The challenge is that comedians can only be at one place at a time, and most casinos only want Friday and Saturday shows. If more casinos did mid-week shows, they would notice the value of added customers on traditionally slower nights of the week. Some of the biggest casinos I work with have picked up on this and now prefer mid-week shows to weekends.

Houston: Finding the right artist at a workable price point. Competing with all the festivals, other casinos and large multi-act concerts. Getting the artist management on the same page with scaling and artist pricing. It needs to make sense.

Kastrup: We are constantly working internally with our colleagues to increase the variety of artist options we can sell to casinos. We’ve been very successful in augmenting the longtime casino staples of classic rock and country programming with more R&B, hip-hop, reggae, comedy and jam bands over the last few years.
Moallempour: Finding quality inventory at a fair price that is new to the market and helps build out future possible gamers.

Nephew: Our biggest challenge is continuing to carve our niche and scheduling off the larger-scale venues in the area.

Kelly Paolino: A key challenge in the casino space this year is the combination of heightened competition and rising operating costs. In the Northeast, the sheer volume of venues means many are competing for the same top tier talent and entertainment experiences, making it more difficult to stand out.

Printup: The same challenges; competition for acts in a highly congested part of the country.

Saunders: Not necessarily a bad challenge but this year has been the year of the stadium tour. We are thrilled with the volume and variety of shows that are playing at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami, but this has meant that a lot of the top talent has been headed out on those tours instead of arenas or theaters. Beyond that, our challenge tends to be similar year after year… how can we continue to push the boundaries of the big event business while staying true to our fans, history, and overall business goals?
How are you affected by the proliferation of new casino properties and venues across the country? Similarly, how do you remain competitive when finding the best opportunities for either your casino or artist?

Houston: There is a lot of competition with Tribal casinos expanding to resort properties and building bigger venues for larger shows. You have to look at the bigger picture and understand routing and costs. Stand-alone buyers face many challenges. Networking and identifying your brand is very important. Understanding your budget and your entertainment goals and strategy is top of the list. Doing your research. Being aggressive but in line with your goals and brand.

Kastrup: We are continuing to educate our colleagues on the new casino properties popping up with first-class venues that offer another option in any given market. There are still preconceived notions regarding playing casinos that we are battling against, but we use our recurring success in this market to craft a story for the agents to share with our clients.
Paolino: Ultimately, the guest experience is what drives long-term success. Today’s casinos are more than gaming venues. Casino venues are vibrant destinations offering world-class dining, exciting entertainment, and exceptional service. Sustaining customer loyalty requires consistently delivering memorable experiences that extend beyond the casino floor.

Printup: New venues in any market cause a certain level of disruption. My strategy has always been to continue to focus on what we can do to present the best schedule and more importantly what we can do to curate the best experience for the guest and artist on each date. Continually looking for ways to provide the best experience for the guest is always an integral part of our mission.