There was an array of important news in the casino and gaming realm that came to light this week. Let’s recap the important headlines, starting with an NBA owner who is looking to cash out his casino holdings.
Cleveland Cavaliers Owner Dan Gilbert Is Trying To Sell Casino Holdings
He lost LeBron James and now he might let go of another piece of his entertainment empire.
Cleveland Cavaliers owner Dan Gilbert has holdings in the JACK Entertainment casino operation and is looking to sell his stake. Caesars Entertainment has emerged as a potential buyer as last week, Bloomberg reported that Gilbert, the founder of Quicken Loans, is trying to unload his stake in JACK, formerly known as Rock Gaming before a rebranding in 2016.
The Detroit-based JACK outlet includes six casinos and so-called “racinos,” which involves three venues in Ohio, the Greektown Casino in Detroit, Horseshoe Baltimore and the Turfway Park racetrack in Florence, Kentucky.
Gilbert already has an “in” with Caesars: Rock Gaming bought Caesars’ stake in the Ohio-based Rock Gaming sites (now under JACK’s rebranded umbrella) in 2015. JACK and Caesars are already collaborators in the Horseshoe Baltimore casino.
Gilbert has been unwilling to make public comments on the Bloomberg report or on anything pertaining to why he might be considering the offloading of his casino holdings at this time. A Cleveland.com report said that since Gilbert’s three Rock/JACK-branded Ohio venues opened between 2012 and 2013, they had produced just over $2.7 billion in revenues.
Palace Station Casino Reopens After $192 M Modernization
The Palace Station Casino, owned by Red Rock Resorts and operated by Station Casinos LLC, is showing a new face to the world. It has finally reopened following a lengthy renovation and is now an expanded and modernized facility.
The Palace Station Casino was founded and first opened in 1976. It underwent one major renovation and addition phase in 1991 and didn’t get an update until they began their second significant uplift in 2017. This latest expansion involves what they are calling “first-to-market restaurant concepts.” While that’s a bit of a fancy term, what it really suggests is they’ve updated their offering of food and beverage vendors. Nowadays, Las Vegas casinos make a ton of revenue from dining, which is why celebrity chef restaurants are littered across the Strip. Palace Station has now updated to get with the times. That’s why we see an all-new feast buffet, an oyster bar and a restaurant from up-and-coming chef Ralph Perazzo.
These additions to the casino’s structure are also accompanied by the creation of a new casino floor, a race and sportsbook renovation, a new six-table poker room, the addition of a sports bar and more video displays.
Global Gaming Awards Las Vegas 2018 Open To Voting
The Global Gaming Awards Las Vegas 2018, in which 70 gaming industry executives hand out awards throughout the sprawling industry and recognize excellence at various levels of management and innovation, have officially opened their voting. CEOs and power brokers for many of the biggest and most influential companies in the gaming industry will be on the massive panel. Winners of the awards should be announced during a ceremony to be held on October 8 at the Sands Expo Las Vegas, which begins the Global Gaming Expo of 2018. Ten nominees in 12 different categories will be selected by the panel of judges.
The Global Gaming Awards were created by Gambling Insider in collaboration with KPMG Isle of Man. BetConstruct is the lead partner of the 2018 edition of the awards.