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June was Atlantic City's last chance to post a good financial performance from its 11 casinos while offering something its main competitor didn't: table games. But that chance went by the boards.
Revenue for the nation's second-largest gambling market fell more than 11% in June, to $286.8 million.
And now Atlantic City is virtually surrounded by table games: Pennsylvania started offering them on Thursday, a few weeks after Delaware did likewise.
Analysts say the stepped-up competition could cost Atlantic City about a quarter of its annual table games revenue, or about $300 million a year.
It was the Pennsylvania slots parlors that began Atlantic City's revenue plunge in late 2006.
Soon, Pennsylvania will have nine casinos offering the same gambling options as Atlantic City - but much closer to home for Pennsylvania players, who have been a big part of Atlantic City's clientele.
Table games revenue for Atlantic City fell 16.2% last month to $79.9 million. Slot revenue fell 9% to $206.9 million.
Only one of the city's 11 casinos posted a revenue increase, and it was minuscule. Trump Marina Hotel Casino, one of the city's most struggling casinos, edged up 1.3%.
Resorts Atlantic City, which turned itself over to its lenders in December when it could no longer pay its mortgage, posted the biggest drop, nearly 20%. Caesars Atlantic City's revenue sank 17.8%, the Trump Taj Mahal Casino Resort dropped 13.5%, Trump Plaza Hotel and Casino fell 13.2%, and Harrah's Resort Atlantic City fell 13%.
The Showboat Casino Hotel skidded 12.4%, the Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa, usually the city's dominant casino, fell 11.7%, and the Atlantic City Hilton Casino Resort, which hasn't paid its own mortgage in a year and is trying to work out a deal with its lenders, slid 7.7%.
The Tropicana Casino and Resort, rebounding after its purchase by billionaire Carl Icahn, fell 5.9% and Bally's Atlantic City slipped 3.2%.
