Following the lifting of Covid-19 restrictions on August 29, casinos in Wales reopened. However, the Rainbow Casino in Cardiff was forced to close again and despite other Welsh casinos remaining open to the public, the likelihood is that they will soon be forced to close once more.
The four main Welsh casinos; Les Croupiers, Grosvenor Cardiff, Rainbow Casino and Grosvenor Swansea are doing their upmost to ensure that they adhere to any government guidelines that they may need to implement either now or in the future.
Casinos in England and Scotland have shared the same fate as Welsh casinos due to the havoc caused by Covid-19. It is estimated that the land-based casino industry in the United Kingdom contributes around £300m a year in tax to the UK treasury.
Whilst the Grosvenor and Les Croupiers casinos are still open to the Welsh public; the Rainbow Casino in Cardiff remains shut.
The Welsh entertainment and leisure sector has been hit massively in 2020. Clubs, casinos, gymnasiums and cinemas as well as local shops have seen their revenues crumble. Many local businesses have gone bankrupt whilst even well-known brands have struggled to stay afloat. The Welsh branches of Debenhams, Laura Ashley and Brighthouse have all been forced to shut-up-shop in Wales due to the coronavirus outbreak.
Grosvenor casinos, however, have not been hit as badly due to their online offering. Grosvenor online casinos are not required to adhere to any COVID regulations since they deal with their customers over the internet. Other online sites offering casino games have also seen their profits rise in 2020.
Megaways casino is partly owned by a Welsh resident who has seen an upturn in players visiting his site. The site offers Megaways slots to visitors from around the world.
On the other hand, Cardiff’s Rainbow Casino does not have an online offering. Its future remains uncertain unless a vaccine for COVID can be found.
As of October 8th, Les Croupiers casino in Cardiff remains open. Les Croupiers does not have an online version of its casino either.
We are now open 7 days a week from 12 midday until 10pm.
— LesCroupiers Cardiff (@LesCroupiers) October 8, 2020
Wales has recently seen a large spike in cases. News broke over the weekend that Bangor was forced to enter local lockdown restrictions. Although the Welsh entertainment sector would have been hoping the worst was behind them, it seems like land-based entertainment venues in Wales are set for an unstable end to 2020.
