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Century Casinos Reports Strong Results for Q1

Effective January 1, 2002 the Company no longer amortizes goodwill and casino license costs pursuant to SFAS No. 142 of the Financial Accounting Standards Board. If this standard had been adopted for the first quarter of 2001 the net earnings for that quarter would have been $794,000, or $0.05 per share compared to $925,000 or $0.07 in the first quarter of 2002. EBITDA (earnings before interest expense, income taxes, depreciation and amortization) increased 4% to $2,578,000 from $2,473,000 reported in 2001.

The Company also reported a 66% improvement in earnings from operations to $1,973,000 in the first quarter 2002 compared to $1,189,000 for the same year ago period. This $784,000 improvement is partially due to the absence of amortization expense in 2002. The first quarter of 2001 included amortization of goodwill and casino licensing costs of $403,000.

"We are reasonably content with our first quarter results", said Erwin Haitzmann, Chairman and CEO. "We have continued to improve earnings year over year and we are making progress at our Caledon operation in South Africa. At Womacks Casino and Hotel in Colorado, U.S.A., we continue to improve operations."

The casino margin for both years was 66.0% for the Company. Although casino revenues increased at both the Caledon Casino and Womacks, the reported casino revenues decreased by $252,000 from period to period as a result of the deterioration of the Rand in South Africa. Associated casino costs were favorably affected by the deterioration of the Rand. Total casino costs decreased by $120,000 from period to period.

General and administrative expense decreased 14% or $301,000 for the Company. Caledon reported a decrease of 38%, or $227,000 compared to the first quarter of 2001. This is due to an overall reduction in cost and the favorable impact of the change in the Rand versus the U.S. dollar. Additionally, the Company's corporate general and administrative expenses decreased by 25%, or $103,000, largely due to a reduction in expenses for professional services.

Depreciation for the quarter decreased to $597,000 in 2002 from $881,000 in 2001. This is partially due to the deterioration of the Rand in South Africa in the first quarter of 2002 compared to the same period in 2001 and to lower depreciation costs at Womacks.

Century Casinos is an international casino company led by a team of gaming industry professionals who have developed and operated more than 100 casinos worldwide. The Company owns and operates Womacks Casino and Hotel in Cripple Creek, Colorado; owns (65%) and operates The Caledon Casino, Hotel & Spa near Cape Town, South Africa; has a five-year casino concession to operate four casinos aboard the ultra-luxury Silversea cruise vessels; has a five-year casino concession to operate the casino aboard The World of ResidenSea cruise vessel, the world's first ocean going luxury residential resort; and manages the Millennium Casino in the Marriott Hotel in Prague, Czech Republic. The Company continues to pursue other international projects in various stages of development.

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