News

GMA quoted in the Nevada Independent

Indy Gaming: Las Vegas left behind as Sands charts future in Macau, Singapore and online

by Howard Stutz

Las Vegas Sands is on its way to becoming just Sands.

the pending $6.25 billion sale of the Venetian, Palazzo, Sphere entertainment project and Sands Expo and Convention Center, announced in March, is expected to close later this year or in early 2022.

The transaction ends the company’s presence on the Strip that began in 1989 when the late Sheldon Adelson acquired the Rat Pack-era Sands Hotel for $110 million.

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GMA quoted in the Wall Street Journal

Chicago Casino Would Be a Costly Bet, Gambling Operators Say

by Katherine Sayre

Chicago leaders are searching for a company to build the city’s first casino, but big gambling operators are concerned that the government’s plans will be too costly to make the project feasible.

The city is calling for a megaresort with hotel rooms, meeting space and a surrounding entertainment district, according to a request for proposals issued in April.  Chicago is hoping a caisno will aid its underfunded pensions, said city officials.

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GMA quoted in CDC Gaming Reports

NIGA Tradeshow: Cashless gaming burgeoning due to pandemic

by Buck Wargo

It took a worldwide health crisis, but cashless gaming has emerged and casinos, including tribal operations, are lining up to embrace the new technology their customers are seeking.

Panelists representing three digital-wallet providers presented an optimistic outlook for the continued frowth of cashless gaming as they spoke to tribal casino executives at the Indian Tradeshow & Convention in Las Vegas.

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GMA quoted on SportsHandle.com

Digital Sports Betting May Not Look Like Stakeholders Thought It Would In Arizona

by Jill R. Dorson

When online sports betting goes live in Arizona, it might not look the way some stakeholders thought it would. While tribal interests believe they’ll be able to offer digital wagering in their casinos and on their reservations, the latest compact amendment doesn’t clearly allow for mobile wagering on a reservation outside of a casino building, and state regulators say they will geofence tribal lands, meaning that digital platforms from outside of a reservation will not be available within the boundaries of a reservation.

Up to 350,000 Native Americans live on reservations in Arizona, including more than 150,000 in the Phoenix metro area.  In a state with a population of about 7 million, those tribal residents represent 5% of the population.

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GMA quoted at MassLive.com

College sports betting, esports, diversity mandate: Here’s what’s in the Massachusetts House’s sports betting bill

by Steph Solis

The Massachusetts House on Thursday passed a sports betting legalization bill, backing wagers on collegiate sports, esports and fantasy contests.

Lawmakers spent six hours reviewing 28 amendments before approving the bill, 156 to 3.

A Boston legislator’s efforts to offer professional sports teams a shot at sports betting licenses didn’t get a vote.  Instead, lawmakers passed an updated version of Rep. Jay Livingstone’s amendment to study on whether the teams should be able to apply for licenses.

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GMA quoted in USBets.com

Could California Add Sports Betting Without A Ballot Referendum?

by John Brennan

The California State Constitution clearly forbids the establishment of commercial casinos without a laborious process that includes requiring approval of a ballot initiative by voters to amend the state’s guiding document.

But must legalization of sports betting face those same hurdles?

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GMA quoted in the Las Vegas Review Journal

Nevada gaming regulators will enforce Clark County mask mandate

by Colton Lochhead

Clark County’s mandate for employees to wear masks while in crowded indoor space also will apply to casinos, the Nevada Gaming Control Board said Wednesday.

When the board issued a notice to the gaming industry in May announcing the lifting of all applicable COVID-19 restrictions starting in June, “it did so knowing that the pandemic would be an evolving emergency for the foreseeable future, and that local jurisdictions would act in the best interests of their constituents,” gaming board Chair J. Brin Gibson said in a statement.

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GMA quoted in CDC Gaming Reports

NIGA Convention and Tradeshow mask policy

by Buck Wargo

A day after a Los Angeles County health official encouraged his residents not to travel to locales with rising COVID-19 infections, like Las Vegas, the Southern Nevada Health District today recommended both unvaccinated and vaccinated people wear masks in crowded indoor public spaces, including casinos.

The release prompted the National Indian Gaming Associated to announce that mask-wearing will be mandatory for everyone when it hosts the Indian Gaming Tradeshow & Convention Monday through Thursday at the Caesars Forum Convention Center.  Previously, NIGA announced mask wearing was required only for the unvaccinated – although vaccination status would not be checked – and masks were encouraged for the unvaccinated.

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GMA quoted on KNPR – Nevada Public Radio

Ownership Shuffles On Strip Called Part Of Gaming Industry Evolution

by Mike Prevatt

Casinos were quiet on the Strip during the pandemic but boardrooms were busy.

Well-known resorts like the Venetian, Palazzo, and Palms have new owners.  Eldorado Resorts took over Caesars Entertainment, keeping the better-known name.  And an alphabet soup of investment vehicles like SPACs (special-purpose acquisition companies) and REITs (real estate investment trusts) have been put to use to extract more value out of Strip resorts and the real estate they sit on.

You can listen to the story here

GMA quoted in the Las Vegas Review Journal

Tribes to discuss sports betting at NIGA gaming expo in Las Vegas

by Richard N. Velotta and Colton Lochhead

The nation’s Indian tribes are driving much of the expansion of sports wagering in the United States, and the subject will be top of mind when many tribal and gaming officials gather at a convention in Las Vegas next week.

The number of states that have legalized sports betting now stands at 32 with 10 of those approved on paper, but not yet operational, according to a report issued last week by California-based gaming industry research Eilers & Krejcik Gaming.  That means that 57 percent of the nation’s adult population can place a single-game wager at their neighborhood sportsbooks or on state-approved apps.  It wasn’t that long ago – just three years –  that Nevada was the only state where legal bets on single games could be placed.

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