Dutch state-owned casino operator Holland Casinos has shut all of its properties until January 2021 after the Netherlands’ government tightened its novel coronavirus (Covid-19) lockdown over the festive period.
Earlier this week Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte said non-essential shops and businesses would close for five weeks after November’s lockdown – which also forced Holland Casino to close its doors – failed to reduce Covid-19 cases.
The operator’s 14 properties across the countries will therefore remain closed until 19 January next year.
It is the third time the pandemic has seen Holland Casino forced to shut its venues in 2020.
The first wave of Covid-19 saw the casinos close their doors from mid-March, and this was originally expected to last until September, until negotiations between the government and the operator saw reopening pushed forward to 1 July.
The casinos were then subject to a midnight curfew from September, as cases began to rise once again, which culminated in a second national lockdown, from 4 to 18 November.
With no legal online gambling – as a result of delays to the planned launch of regulated igaming – Holland Casino has taken a major financial hit from the pandemic.
Turnover for the first half of 2020 was down 58.7% to €146.3m, with net loss for the period coming to €28.3m, compared to a €32.5m profit in the prior year.
