Category: Casino News

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Bally’s Stands Alone?

Wouldn’t it be the apex of irony if unfunded Bally’s New York were the only New York City casino project left standing when all’s said and done? It would go from iffy in the extreme to $4 billion investment magnet overnight and Chairman Soo Kim will be gloating all the way to the bank. It’s not such a fantastic scenario (although one wouldn’t have believed it two months ago) now that Metropolitan Park is embattled and Resorts World New York City is having second thoughts.

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GLPI Speaks

It was recently our pleasure to interview Gaming & Leisure Properties Inc. President Brandon Moore at length for a forthcoming issue of Casino Life Magazine. Indeed, Moore was interviewed at such length that we wound up with 4,700-plus words of transcript! As a service to S&G readers and a coming-attractions trailer for the print interview, here are outtakes from our conversation. But we don’t here address the rampaging elephant in the room that is Bally’s Corp.—we have to save something for the printed version!

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Midwest flexes, ESPN Bet folds

Illinois casinos were booming in October, up 21% … or 7.5% once second-place Wind Creek Southland and last-place Fairmont Park were subtracted to make an apples-to-apples comparison. The headline for J.P. Morgan analyst Daniel Politzer was the loss of the novelty factor at Hollywood Joliet, which has trended downward from August through October. Darn, the sheen came off that casino fast. Normally we don’t put much stock in sequential comparisons, but still … dang! We had hoped for better.

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Election Special

It’s always too soon to celebrate the demise of smoking in Atlantic City. However, clean-air advocates (and customers) have reason to feel guardedly optimistic today. Ally Mikie Sherrill (D, pictured) smoked status-quo champion Jack Ciattrelli (R), 56% to 43%. Despite character flaws and serious bread-and-butter concerns by voters, Sherrill prevailed. It was predicted to be a nail-biter and ended up a laugher.

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Best of the Rest

“Solid” was Wall Street‘s consensus on 3Q25 at Station Casinos. The company came in slightly under Deutsche Bank‘s targets but analyst Steven Pizzella still seemed pleased. Revenue was $486.5 million and Station was noted to have weathered construction upheavals at several properties, as it upgrades its product. Restaurant business was good, with F&B revenues hopping 2.5%. Thanks to room disruption at Green Valley Ranch, hotel revenues sagged 8%. And, for the first time, we heard that debility on the Las Vegas Strip might start dampening locals-casino results.

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Out Like a Lamb

Barry Jonas called it. His report on MGM Resorts International‘s 3Q25 earnings was headlined “The Summer the Strip Turned Pretty … Bad.” Ouch. But true. He kept a “Buy” rating on the stock but shaved a dollar off his price target, now $47/share. Jonas reported that MGM is leaning on high-end business, hoping for stabilization in 4Q and growth next year. Is CEO Bill Hornbuckle seeing the same indicators we are? Because the latest “Beige Book” for the Upper Midwest was pretty dire. If the rest of the U.S. is suffering comparably, MGM is going to feel the pain.

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Locals Rise, Strip Sinks

It’s a good thing that Las Vegas has diversified its economy since 2008. Were that not the case, the subpar performance of the Las Vegas Strip would be pulling everyone down with it. But September’s gambling grosses show resilience in the locals-casino sphere … and the weakness of the Strip starting to infect Downtown as well.

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Foul Play

Be careful what you wish for, NBA Commissioner Adam Silver, you are liable to get it. Silver wanted sports betting and, over the last seven years, has seen the consequences come home to roost in his league. Whereas the NFL cleaned up its sports betting problem (consisting mainly of player stupidity) fairly expeditiously and Major League Baseball comes down like a ton of bricks on offenders, the NBA remains dogged by scandal. (Can you say “Jontay Porter“? We thought so. How about “Malik Beasley“?)

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… And They’re Here To Help

Not! It’s time for Stupid Government Tricks, in which the guvmint blunders into gambling oversight, usually with disastrous consequences. First up is Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson (D), who wants to double down on Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker (D) and his usurious tax on sports betting handle. Seeing all the money the state stands to make (and possibly affrighted by the specter of predatory prediction markets), Johnson proposes a 10.25% tax on OSB revenue. It’s all part of a tap dance to cover a gaping budgetary hole. The target amount? $26 million a year.

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Atlantic City Levels Off

After a good summer, gambling winnings in Atlantic City have plateaued in September, achieving $230.5 million. The coffee achiever of the Boardwalk was Ocean Casino Resort (above), catapulting 39% to $39.5 million. Hard Rock Atlantic City was still ahead at $45.5 million (2%) but that might be too close for comfort. Borgata led with $63 million but had the flattest grosses in town.

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