Mohegan Sun posts top slot revenue in nearly 3 years

Mohegan Sun had its best month in nearly three years in July, at least in terms of slot-machine revenue.

The casino kept $55.9 million after paying out prizes, its highest “win” since it kept $56.2 million in August 2014 — a 35-month stretch.

Mohegan Sun’s July win was up 3.4 percent over the same month the previous year and was its fourth year-over-year gain in the last five months, figures released Tuesday show.

Foxwoods Resort Casino kept $42.6 million in slots revenue last month, a 3.5 percent decline over July 2016.

“Obviously, we’re very pleased with our results,” said Ray Pineault, president and general manager of Mohegan Sun, who pointed out that it was his casino’s highest July win in five years.

Mohegan Sun kept nearly $60 million in July 2012.

Typically, July and August are the months that occasion the casinos’ highest slots revenues.

Pineault attributed his casino’s performance to a strong Mohegan Sun Arena schedule that included 16 July events, one more than in the previous July. The events included two Ed Sheeran concerts, one by The Who and four Connecticut Sun women’s basketball games.

The impact of the Earth Tower hotel, which provided Mohegan Sun with an additional 400 rooms when it opened last November, also contributed to the year-overyear increase in slots revenues, Pineault said.

Mohegan Sun’s “handle,” the total amount of wagers before prizes are paid out, totaled $667.1 million last month, a decline of less than half a percentage point over July 2016. Foxwoods’ handle last month was up 1.6 percent to $572.5 million.

During July, Mohegan Sun operated, on average, 4,945 slots machines; Foxwoods averaged 4,178.

The casinos pay 25 percent of their slots win to the state. Mohegan Sun’s contribution for July was $14 million, while Foxwoods paid $11.4 million.