Chavdar Vasilev is a journalist covering the casino and sports betting market sectors for CasinoBeats. He joined CasinoBeats in May 2025 and reports on industry-shaping stories across the US and beyond, including legislative debates, market...
Read Full BioWhile Las Vegas visitation continues to decline, some of the city’s most premium entertainment offerings are enjoying resilience and success. The Sphere’s latest production, “The Wizard of Oz at Sphere,” has surpassed $200 million in ticket sales since its September launch.
The adaptation of the 1939 classic has drawn over 1.5 million attendees, reaching the one million mark in October. The milestone further positions Sphere as one of the city’s most powerful revenue engines at a time when traditional tourism metrics remain weak.
Sphere’s Run Extends a Streak of Premium Success
“The Wizard of Oz at Sphere” is the venue’s newest standout, but it follows a string of similarly high-grossing runs.
According to some reports, Dead & Company’s “Dead Forever” residency generated over $131 million from roughly 477,000 tickets. Meanwhile, U2’s “Achtung Baby” series reached almost $245 million in gross sales.
Sphere’s parent company, MSG Entertainment, scheduled approximately 100 events for 2025, up from around 70 in 2024.
Tourism Down for 10 Straight Months
While Sphere thrives, the rest of the Strip is contending with softer foot traffic. October saw 4.4% fewer visitors compared to October 2024, according to the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority (LVCVA). That marked the tenth consecutive month of declining visitation.
That slump has translated into pressure across the hospitality sector:
- Hotel occupancy fell to 83.7%.
- The average daily room rate (ADR) decreased by 6% to $203.88.
- Revenue per available room (RevPAR) declined 8.2% to $170.65.
Casual-visitor activity — historically the backbone of the Strip’s non-gaming income — remains the segment under the most strain.
Gaming Revenue Outperforms Visitation
But while overall visitation is down, gaming floors continue to defy the slump. Clark County casinos generated $1.17B in gaming win in October, a 5% year-over-year increase.
The Strip alone delivered $748.9M, up 8.2%, primarily driven by strong table-game hold and consistent high-end baccarat play. Statewide totals climbed to $1.35B, marking Nevada’s 56th straight billion-dollar month.
This divergence between visitation and gaming revenue suggests a shift in visitor composition — fewer guests overall, but higher per-capita spending among those still coming to town.
High-Spend Experiences Defy Market Softness
The resilience of top-tier entertainment extends beyond Sphere. Select large-scale and premium events continue to perform strongly despite broader visitation declines:
- ComplexCon 2025 drew a record 70,000 attendees to the Las Vegas Convention Center.
- Major sporting weekends at Allegiant Stadium and the Las Vegas Motor Speedway, along with Formula 1, continue to generate high-value spikes in hotel and gaming activity.
- Conventions are increasingly essential to midweek performance, as evidenced by the 603,600 convention attendees in October, a 7.9% increase. Oracle CloudWorld — drawing around 30,000 guests — provided a notable boost.
These pockets of strength suggest that high-spending visitors and marquee events remain reliable, even as demand for mass tourism weakens.
