Crown interim chairman Jane Halton stated that 2021 has been a challenging year for Crown due to the Covid-19 pandemic and increased regulatory scrutiny. This has resulted in significant impacts on business operations. Crown’s largest source of income, non-gaming revenue, including wagering, decreased by 9.4% to $651.1m. The main gaming floor tables saw a substantial drop of 40.0%, generating $412.9m in revenue. Additionally, main floor gaming machine revenue was down 14.0% to $548.9m. The strict travel restrictions for entering Australia led to a complete collapse of VIP revenue, decreasing from $306.7m in 2019-20 to just $6.9m in 2020-21.
Breaking down the revenue by segment, the flagship Crown Melbourne property experienced a 60.5% decrease, bringing in $582.5m. The majority of revenue for Crown Melbourne, at $406.9m, came from its main gaming floor. Within this total, table games contributed $241.2m (down 54.3%) and machine revenue accounted for $165.7m (down 51.5%). VIP gaming revenue plummeted from $352.3m in 2019-20 to nearly nothing, while non-gaming revenue dropped 52.8% to $171.2m.
Crown Perth, on the other hand, fared better and became the leading property for the operator with a 21.1% revenue growth, reaching $613.3m. The main floor machines contributed $306.6m, main floor tables brought in $171.7m, and non-gaming revenue generated $264.1m. Despite facing short-term closures throughout the second half, Crown Perth’s trading performance rebounded quickly following each shutdown.
Crown Sydney, which is currently not licensed to host gambling, generated $68.6m solely from non-gaming sources. It is possible for Crown to operate gaming in the future if the state of New South Wales deems it suitable after implementing necessary changes in response to the inquiry. Crown’s wagering and online division experienced an 8.5% increase, bringing in $147.0m. The Crown Aspinalls members-only club in the UK contributed $2.1m to the business.
In terms of expenses, the business reported a slight dip to $1.98bn. Employment costs remained the largest expense, amounting to $695.4m (down 6.0%). Taxes and levies declined by 12.3% to $373.1m, while depreciation and amortisation expenses rose by 5.5% to $290.3m. Other costs included $112.7m in costs of sales, $102.7m in property costs, and $28.0m in asset impairment.
Crown faced various challenges going forward, with Crown Melbourne closing temporarily again in August and still awaiting the outcomes of reports assessing its suitability to hold gaming licenses for its Australian properties. After major personnel changes, including the resignation of the chief executive and the appointment of a new chairman, Crown continues to navigate these difficulties.
