Victoria’s $2 billion pokies losses down 26% year on year

July 24, 2020 3:48 pm.by Kevin Pitstock

Poker machine policy battle

The Victorian pokies losses report for the 2019-20 financial year has now been released and has shown a 26% decrease of $700,000 compared to the previous year with the COVID19 shutdowns being blamed for the dramatic drop.

The total losses on poker machines for Victorians in 2019-20 was $1,988,211,131.12 down from $2,699,173,406.19 the previous year.

Every July the Victorian Commission for Gambling and Liquor Regulation (VCGLR) publishes the annual gaming expenditure data (poker machine player losses) for the previous financial year. The data outlines total gaming expenditure and gaming venue information, including venue classification and electronic gaming machine numbers for Victoria.

VCGLR Director of Licensing Alex Fitzpatrick said, “Victorian gambling venues have been closed since the State of Emergency was declared on 16 March 2020. Gaming expenditure data for April, May and June 2020 reflects these closures.”

The VCGLR has also releases the full list of which the suburbs are the biggest pokies players, and which venues.

Top 25 Pokies Victorian Suburbs To Lose Your Money
By Council Area
Rank	Suburb	Pokies Losses
1	Brimbank	$101,974,223.76
2	Casey	$98,000,778.71
3	Whittlesea	$ 91,066,518.95
4	Greater Geelong	$89,137,264.73
5	Greater Dandenong	$87,430,092.38
6	Hume	$85,935,114.72
7	Monash	$80,541,622.78
8	Wyndham	$75,755,561.99
9	Mornington Peninsula	$63,053,341.44
10	Kingston	$62,080,320.77
11	Melbourne	$60,550,927.45
12	Moonee Valley	$57,497,773.73
13	Darebin	$56,942,296.11
14	Glen Eira	$54,025,303.76
15	Knox	$53,495,581.38
16	Melton	$51,592,384.79
17	Frankston	$46,303,077.79
18	Moreland	$45,240,802.69
19	Maroondah	$45,231,944.01
20	Ballarat	$43,713,216.26
21	Banyule	$42,485,587.54
22	Maribyrnong	$42,243,207.83
23	Manningham	$40,882,396.55
24	Whitehorse	$37,533,801.12
25	Greater Bendigo	$37,393,438.34

Top 25 Pokies Venues To Lose Money At In Victoria
Rank	Venue	Pokies Losses
1	Epping Plaza Hotel	$15,293,002
2	Plough Hotel	$15,043,093
3	Gladstone Park Hotel	$14,406,838
4	Berwick Springs Hotel	$14,263,668
5	Skyways Taverner	$13,921,181
6	Kealba Hotel	$13,867,377
7	Keysborough Hotel	$13,300,947
8	Excelsior Hotel	$13,115,280
9	Bundoora Taverner	$12,866,024
10	Rosstown Hotel	$12,600,779
11	Roxburgh Park Hotel	$12,426,787
12	Deer Park Hotel	$12,367,129
13	Highways Sandown	$12,221,325
14	Dorset Gardens Hotel	$12,052,871
15	Dingley International Hotel	$11,864,546
16	Taylors Lakes Family Hotel	$11,380,721
17	The Chase Hotel	$11,280,259
18	West Waters Hotel	$10,962,852
19	Shoppingtown Hotel	$10,791,764
20	Highlands Hotel	$10,790,118
21	Bourke Hill’s Welcome Stranger	$10,611,706
22	Greyhounds Entertainment	$10,489,527
23	Seaford Taverner	$10,445,185
24	Werribee Plaza Tavern	$10,254,127
25	Pullman Melbourne On Swanston	$10,138,418