The Texas Sports Betting Alliance is confident that it has the support needed to pass legislation legalising online sports betting sites in the state, pending a referendum in November 2023. The legislation would place the Texas Lottery Commission in charge of licensing and regulating online sportsbooks, with teams, leagues, and racetracks eligible for licenses. Operators would be subject to a 10% tax on adjusted gross wagering revenue, with a $500,000 licensing fee. Bettors would have to be aged 21 or older to wager. The legislation would only come into effect in 2024 if a constitutional amendment is approved by voters.

According to Malaysia-based Genting Berhad, the owner of Resorts World Las Vegas, the Strip property had its best quarter since opening in June 2021. In the fourth quarter of 2022, the resort’s revenue increased 32% to $227 million, while its revenue for the whole of 2022 increased 120% to $794.4 million. Genting spent $4.3 billion to build the first large-scale integrated resort on the Strip since 2010. The resort had a cash flow of $116 million in 2022, while its hotel occupancy was at 84% for its 3,500 rooms. Genting executives credited the resort’s success to Las Vegas visitor volume of over 38.8 million in 2022, which was 9% below pre-pandemic levels in 2019, and convention attendance of 5 million, 25% below 2019 levels.

Bally’s Corp. is focusing on opening a temporary casino on Wabash Avenue in downtown Chicago later this year, as a prelude to the company’s planned $1.7 billion resort complex at the former Chicago Tribune plant along the Chicago River. The permanent casino is set to open in 2026. Despite its focus on Chicago, Bally’s President George Papanier said that having a location in Las Vegas was “a necessity” for the Rhode Island-based casino company, which operates 15 casinos in 10 states. However, the company will take its time deciding how to redevelop the Tropicana Las Vegas, with Papanier saying they are looking for the right project with the appropriate return for that market. There have been discussions with the Oakland A’s on how a Major […]