All casinos, slot machine parlors, VIP clubs, horse and sports betting branches in Macau officially closed their doors at midnight on Wednesday 5 February following the government’s directive to prevent the spread of the novel Coronavirus.
It is the only time Macau’s gaming industry has faced such a lengthy imposition and the first time all casinos have closed their doors since a 33-hour shut down in September 2018 due to the approaching Typhoon Mangkhut.
Macau’s Chief Executive, Ho Iat Seng, has stated that operations are likely to return to normal at the conclusion of the mandated 15-day period assuming the so-called epidemic is deemed to be under control.
An hour before midnight on Tuesday – roughly six hours after full details of the closures were announced by the government at a press conference – the city’s casinos began refusing entry to guests while notifying others already inside that they must exit the premises by 12am. All entries were then officially closed as the clock struck midnight, with inspectors from Macau’s gaming regulator, the Gaming Inspection and Coordination Bureau (DICJ) dispatched to oversee the process.
The six gaming concessionaires have promised to pay around 40,000 casino workers most impacted by the closures their full pay, although their jobs will be re-arranged in the short-term to best accommodate.
The ban impacts all 41 operating casinos in Macau, Melco Resorts’ Mocha Clubs, 95 licenses junket operators, Macau Jockey Club and the SAR’s sole sports betting operation, Macau Slot.
With the casinos now closed and visitation to the SAR already down by almost 80% due to various prevention measures implemented at the city’s entry points, Macau’s world-famous IRs and the streets surrounding them made for a strange sight, with the usually crowded gaming floors and retail malls eerily empty when Inside Asian Gaming visited.
Analysts have predicted the impact on Macau’s February GGR could be a year-on-year decline of as much as 75%, assuming all casinos and gaming operations re-open for business on 20 February as planned.
