Purchases impact annual results at Red Rock Resorts Incorporated

American casino operator Red Rock Resorts Incorporated has released its financial results for 2017 showing a 59.5% decrease year-on-year in net income to $63 million primarily due to its recent acquisitions of the leases for Las Vegas’ Texas Station Gambling Hall and Hotel and Boulder Station Hotel and Casino. Through its majority interest in Station […]

New Bidders Emerge for Springfield Riverfront Area Renovation ahead of Casino Opening

A sixth bidder for the renovation of Springfield’s Riverfront Park has emerged, Massachusetts news outlet MassLive reported earlier today. Agawam-based company JL Construction has submitted a $2.418-million base bid for the project, the lowest one presented by the Wednesday deadline.

Springfield officials sought bidders for the renovation of the riverfront area of the city ahead of this fall’s opening of MGM Springfield, the state’s first integrated resort with a commercial full-fledged gaming floor.

According to city officials, JL Construction’s bid is within expectations and would allow for the renovation project to begin this spring, as originally intended by the city. Springfield Mayor Domenic J. Sarno has recently been cited saying that a number of projects that are aimed at boosting the city’s riverfront area have been moving forward.

The official has further noted that it is particularly important not only for the region to be revitalized, but also for the city’s North and South Ends, downtown neighborhoods and business, entertainment, and governmental areas to be reconnected.

Details about the Riverfront Park Project

City officials hope that renovation work in Riverfront Park would commence on April 1 and would be completed by October 1, or shortly after the opening of MGM Springfield. The $950-plus-million resort, which is entering the final stages of development no far from Riverfront Park, is set to open doors in September.

The Riverfront Park renovation project was originally announced last year by city officials. The scheme was estimated at around $2.5 million. MGM Springfield will fund the project partially through a $1-million grant. Mayor Sarno and the City Council have also approved a proposal for $1.6 million in city bond funds to be contributed to the renovation project.

Renovation at the park would include earthwork, the addition of a natural grass lawn for various events, a new playground, a new fountain, tree plantings, and concrete walks among others.

Meanwhile, MGM Springfield is gearing up to finally open doors as Massachusetts’ first integrated resort this fall. The property was originally planned to be launched much earlier, but design changes and construction work at the nearby Intestate 91 delayed its opening.

The $960-million property will feature a hotel, a casino with Las Vegas-style gaming options, that is slot machines and table games, including 23 poker tables, a number of food and beverage, retail, and entertainment facilities, including a six-screen movie theater. The resort will occupy more than 2 million square feet and will spread across three blocks in Downtown Springfield once complete.

Casino operator MGM Resorts International has recently begun looking for staff for its newest property. The company has previously promised that its MGM Springfield workforce would be largely represented by people form the city and the region. The resort would employ around 3,000 people, once fully operational.

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Business improves at Scientific Games Corporation

American gaming products and services giant Scientific Games Corporation has released its financial results for the twelve months to the end of December showing an almost 7% increase year-on-year in overall revenues to $3.08 billion thanks to improvements in takings from each of its business segments. Scientific Games Corporation revealed that its services division posted […]

Race for William Hill’s Australian Betting Business Narrowed to Two Bidders

Two bidders for William Hill Australia have been granted due diligence access to the business, the Australian Financial Review has reported citing unnamed sources familiar with the matter.

British bookmaker William Hill announced in January that it had decided to review its underperforming Australian business and that a sale was under consideration. The Australian Financial Review reported earlier this week that four rival gambling operators had submitted their offers by Monday morning, with those four reportedly being bet365, Paddy Power Betfair, Ladbrokes, and local betting operator CrownBet.

It is understood that Paddy Power Betfair’s Australian business Sportsbet and CrownBet have been shortlisted and given access to confidential information about William Hill’s Australian operations. The information will play important part in setting the final price of the sports betting business. It is believed that it would be valued at around A$200 million. William Hill Australia currently holds a 5% share in the nation’s sports betting market.

The British bookmaker expanded into Australia in 2013 when it acquired the Australian and Spanish operations of Sportingbet as well as the Centrebet and Tom Waterhouse brands from local bookmaker Tom Waterhouse. The three businesses remained under the stewardship of Mr. Waterhouse, as William Hill wanted to leverage his experience in the field and his connections across Australia.

A Bidding War amid Regulatory Changes

William Hill’s underperformance in Australia combined with the recent regulatory changes introduced in the country at a state and federal level could be considered the main reason why the operator has decided to leave the local sports betting field.

Several Australian states have decided to implement a 15% point-of-consumption tax that would require operators to contribute a portion of their revenue to the jurisdictions they target players from and not just to the jurisdictions they are licensed in. A federal ban on credit betting and the click-to-call betting feature, previously deployed by offshore operators to exploit a loophole into Australian betting laws, have also been part of the recent wave of changes in the nation’s gambling regulatory landscape.

These reforms were expected to intensify greater merger and acquisition activity within the betting space and the William Hill Australia sale comes as a manifestation to these expectations.

Paddy Power-backed Sportsbet is understood to be one of the bidders for William Hill’s Australian operations. It is currently the largest corporate bookmaker in the country, holding a 15% of the local wagering market. As for CrownBet, the other bidder, it was announced earlier this week that Canadian gambling giant The Stars Group has entered into agreement to buy a 62% stake in the operator from its current majority stakeholder Crown Resorts.

The Stars Group has partnered with other CrownBet shareholders to complete the deal, including its founder and current CEO Matthew Tripp. The Canadian gambling giant thus secured its entry into the Australian betting market.

According to the Australian Financial Review, the winning bidder for William Hill’s Australian business could be announced next week. William Hill has hired financial group Citi and law firm Clifford Chance to advise it through the sale. The company’s Australian business recorded turnover of A$2.55 billion, revenue of A$201.1 million (down 1% year-on-year), and operating profit of nearly A$30 million (up 11%) last year, according to its recently released financial results.

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Play’n GO up for three Global Regulatory Awards

Omni-channel slots specialist and leading mobile casino games developer Play’n GO has received three nominations at the Gambling Compliance-run Global Regulatory Awards 2018 to be hosted at the Sheraton Grand London Park Lane on the evening of April 18 in Piccadilly, London. Shortlisted for In-house Counsel/Legal Team of the Year is Play’n GO’s wider compliance […]

Churchill Downs Buys Casinos in Pennsylvania and Mississippi to Expand US Presence

Kentucky-headquartered casino operator Churchill Downs Incorporated announced on Wednesday that it would expand its footprint across the United States through the acquisition of Presque Isle Downs & Casino in Eerie, Pennsylvania and Lady Luck Casino in Vicksburg, Mississippi for a combined purchase price of $229.5 million.

The completion of the two deals is subject to regulatory approval from the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board and the Mississippi Gaming Commission. Churchill Downs needs to obtain licenses from the two regulatory bodies in order to be able to buy the two venues and to operate in the two states. With Presque Isle Downs & Casino being a horse racing venue, the gaming company is also seeking a license from the Pennsylvania State Horse Racing Commission.

News about the two deals emerged as another manifestation of the consolidation process within the US gaming space that began last year. It was in mid-November when Las Vegas giant Caesars Entertainment announced that it would buy Centaur Holdings and its Indiana-based properties for a cash deal valued at $1.7 billion. In December, Penn National Gaming confirmed that it had agreed to buy rival Pinnacle Entertainment in a $2.8-billion cash-and-stock deal.

In a Wednesday statement, Churchill Downs said that it would pay the purchase price for the two casinos fully in cash.

Expansion across the US

Churchill Downs Inc. is the owner of the iconic Churchill Downs racetrack, which opened back in 1875 and has been hosting the popular Kentucky Derby since then. Aside from its home state, the company also managed casino and racing properties in Maine, Florida, Illinois, and a number of other states across the United States.

Here it is also important to note that up until recently, Churchill Downs was also the owner of social gaming company Big Fish Games, which it acquired in 2014 in a deal valued at nearly $900 million. Earlier this year, Aristocrat Leisure finalized a $900-million deal for the acquisition of the developer of casual games from the US casino and racing operator.

Adding Presque Isle and Lady Luck to its portfolio of operations, Churchill Downs will now be able to expand into Pennsylvania and Mississippi. Presque Isle opened doors as a casino with 1,600 slot machines, 32 table games, and a poker room in February 2007 and launched live thoroughbred racing in September of that year. As for Lady Luck, the Vicksburg-based property features a gaming floor with 620 slot machines and 9 table games as well as an 89-room hotel.

Churchill Downs said that it expects to complete the Lady Luck acquisition during the second quarter of the year. Conditioned on the closure of the Lady Luck deal, the Presque Isle transaction is expected to be finalized in the fourth quarter of 2018. An entry into Pennsylvania’s gambling market could make it possible for Churchill Downs to expand its business by launching online gambling operations. Last fall, Pennsylvania became the fourth US state to legalize the provision of online gaming services.

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Toby Lewis Enters Final Day of WPT LAPC Championship as Chip Leader

The official six-handed final table of the 2018 L.A. Poker Classic $10,000 Championship was set last night at Commerce Casino. Toby Lewis, who entered the day with the second largest stack, bagged the chip lead for the night.

The player collected 5.39 million in chips last night to secure himself with a comfortable advantage over the other five contenders left to play at the final table. Dennis Bleiden, Wednesday’s start-of-the-day chip leader, finished second in chips last night with 4.125 million. Marc Macdonnell rounded out the podium with the third largest chip stack of the night. However, with a total of 1.695 million, the player is far behind Lewis and Blieden.

With live tournament earnings of $4,379,236, Lewis is the most profitable player at the final table of the LAPC Main Event. The 28-year Englishman has secured his sixth WPT cash by making it thus far into the $10,000 buy-in tournament. What is more, this is a third final table for the player within the series. He is yet to win a title, but as it can be seen, he has positioned himself quite well to capture the 2018 LAPC trophy.

Despite lacking a WPT title, Lewis is well-acquainted with the feeling of winning a major poker tournament. The young English player came into the LAPC Main Event fresh from a victory at the 2018 Aussie Millions Poker Championship, where he topped the field of the A$10,600 Main Event for a career best cash of A$1,458,198.

Final Day of Action

The final table of the 2018 LAPC Main Event is set to be played today. Aside from Lewis, Blieden, and Macdonnell, Derek Walters (1.52 million), Peter Hengsakul (1.065 million), and Manuel Martinez (985,000) also made it to that final stage of the tournament.

This will be a third WPT final table for Lewis and Wolters and first for each of the other four survivors. Action is set to resume today at 4 pm local time at the Commerce Casino.

Each of the six finalists is guaranteed a minimum cash prize of $186,235. The winner will leave with $1 million, a secured seat into the season-ending WPT Tournament of Champions, slated to be played at Aria Resort & Casino in Las Vegas in May, and a fancy Hublot watch.

Former WPT champions Zachary Smiley and Anthony Zinno fell short of the final table after being eliminated on Wednesday. With 13 players returning at the host venue, Smiley came out in 12th place, good for a payout of $70,820. The player has one previous title from the series.

As for Zinno, he was eying a record title number four, but could not make it to the final table, after falling in 8th place. On Hand #20 of the day, Zinno’s [As][3s] clashed into Blieden’s [Ad][7h] to sent him to the rail. The player collected $112,180 for his efforts.

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