LAS VEGAS — Sin City blew a kiss goodbye to the Tropicana before first light Wednesday in an elaborate implosion that reduced to rubble the last true mob building on the Las Vegas Strip.
The Tropicana’s hotel towers tumbled in a celebration that included a fireworks display. It was the first implosion in nearly a decade for a city that loves fresh starts and that has made casino implosions as much a part of its identity as gambling itself.
“What Las Vegas has done, in classic Las Vegas style, they’ve turned many of these implosions into spectacles,” said Geoff Schumacher, historian and vice president of exhibits and programs at the Mob Museum.
Former casino mogul Steve Wynn changed the way Las Vegas blows up casinos in 1993 with the implosion of the Dunes to make room for the Bellagio. Wynn thought not only to televise the event but created a fantastical story for the implosion that made it look like pirate ships at his other casino across the street were firing at the Dunes.
From then on, Schumacher said, there was a sense in Las Vegas that destruction at that magnitude was worth witnessing.
The city hasn’t blown up a Strip casino since 2016, when the final tower of the Riviera was leveled for a convention center expansion.
This time, the implosion cleared land for a $1.5 billion baseball stadium for the relocating Oakland Athletics, part of the city’s latest rebrand into a sports hub.
That will leave only the Flamingo from the city’s mob era on the Strip. But, Schumacher said, the Flamingo’s original structures are long gone. The casino was completely rebuilt in the 1990s.
The Tropicana, the third-oldest casino on the Strip, closed in April after welcoming guests for 67 years.
Once known as the “Tiffany of the Strip” for its opulence, it was a frequent haunt of the legendary Rat Pack, while its past under the mob has long cemented its place in Las Vegas lore.
It opened in 1957 with three stories and 300 hotel rooms split into two wings.
As Las Vegas rapidly evolved in the following decades, including a building boom of Strip megaresorts in the 1990s, the Tropicana also underwent major changes. Two hotel towers were added in later years. In 1979, the casino’s beloved $1 million green-and-amber stained glass ceiling was installed above the casino floor.
The Tropicana’s original low-rise hotel wings survived the many renovations, however, making it the last true mob structure on the Strip.
Behind the scenes of the casino’s grand opening, the Tropicana had ties to organized crime, largely through reputed mobster Frank Costello.
Costello was shot in the head in New York weeks after the Tropicana’s debut. He survived, but the investigation led police to a piece of paper in his coat pocket with the Tropicana’s exact earnings figure, revealing the mob’s stake in the casino.
By the 1970s, federal authorities investigating mobsters in Kansas City charged more than a dozen operatives with conspiring to skim $2 million in gambling revenue from Las Vegas casinos, including the Tropicana. Charges connected to the Tropicana alone resulted in five convictions.
There were no public viewing areas for the event, but fans of the Tropicana did have a chance in April to bid farewell to the vintage Vegas relic.
“Old Vegas, it’s going,” Joe Zappulla, a teary-eyed New Jersey resident, said at the time as he exited the casino, shortly before the locks went on the doors.
LAS VEGAS — Sin City will quite literally blow a kiss goodbye to the Tropicana before first light Wednesday in an elaborate implosion that will reduce to rubble the last true mob building on the Las Vegas Strip.
The Tropicana’s hotel towers are expected to tumble in 22 seconds at 2:30 a.m. Wednesday. The celebration will include a fireworks display and drone show.
It will be the first implosion in nearly a decade for a city that loves fresh starts and that has made casino implosions as much a part of its identity as gambling itself.
“What Las Vegas has done, in classic Las Vegas style, they’ve turned many of these implosions into spectacles,” said Geoff Schumacher, historian and vice president of exhibits and programs at the Mob Museum.
Former casino mogul Steve Wynn changed the way Las Vegas blows up casinos in 1993 with the implosion of the Dunes to make room for the Bellagio. Wynn thought not only to televise the event but created a fantastical story for the implosion that made it look like pirate ships at his other casino across the street were firing at the Dunes.
From then on, Schumacher said, there was a sense in Las Vegas that destruction at that magnitude was worth witnessing.
The city hasn’t blown up a Strip casino since 2016, when the final tower of the Riviera was leveled for a convention center expansion.
This time, the implosion will clear land for a $1.5 billion baseball stadium for the relocating Oakland Athletics, part of the city’s latest rebrand into a sports hub.
That will leave only the Flamingo from the city’s mob era on the Strip. But, Schumacher said, the Flamingo’s original structures are long gone. The casino was completely rebuilt in the 1990s.
The Tropicana, the third-oldest casino on the Strip, closed in April after welcoming guests for 67 years.
Once known as the “Tiffany of the Strip” for its opulence, it was a frequent haunt of the legendary Rat Pack, while its past under the mob has long cemented its place in Las Vegas lore.
It opened in 1957 with three stories and 300 hotel rooms split into two wings.
As Las Vegas rapidly evolved in the following decades, including a building boom of Strip megaresorts in the 1990s, the Tropicana also underwent major changes. Two hotel towers were added in later years. In 1979, the casino’s beloved $1 million green-and-amber stained glass ceiling was installed above the casino floor.
The Tropicana’s original low-rise hotel wings survived the many renovations, however, making it the last true mob structure on the Strip.
Behind the scenes of the casino’s grand opening, the Tropicana had ties to organized crime, largely through reputed mobster Frank Costello.
Costello was shot in the head in New York weeks after the Tropicana’s debut. He survived, but the investigation led police to a piece of paper in his coat pocket with the Tropicana’s exact earnings figure, revealing the mob’s stake in the casino.
By the 1970s, federal authorities investigating mobsters in Kansas City charged more than a dozen operatives with conspiring to skim $2 million in gambling revenue from Las Vegas casinos, including the Tropicana. Charges connected to the Tropicana alone resulted in five convictions.
Its implosion on Wednesday will be streamed live and televised by local news stations.
There will be no public viewing areas for the event, but fans of the Tropicana did have a chance in April to bid farewell to the vintage Vegas relic.
“Old Vegas, it’s going,” Joe Zappulla, a teary-eyed New Jersey resident, said at the time as he exited the casino, shortly before the locks went on the doors.
LAS VEGAS — Sin City will quite literally blow a kiss goodbye to the Tropicana before first light Wednesday in an elaborate implosion that will reduce to rubble the last true mob building on the Las Vegas Strip.
The Tropicana’s hotel towers are expected to tumble in 22 seconds at 2:30 a.m. Wednesday. The celebration will include a fireworks display and drone show.
It will be the first implosion in nearly a decade for a city that loves fresh starts and that has made casino implosions as much a part of its identity as gambling itself.
“What Las Vegas has done, in classic Las Vegas style, they’ve turned many of these implosions into spectacles,” said Geoff Schumacher, historian and vice president of exhibits and programs at the Mob Museum.
Former casino mogul Steve Wynn changed the way Las Vegas blows up casinos in 1993 with the implosion of the Dunes to make room for the Bellagio. Wynn thought not only to televise the event but created a fantastical story for the implosion that made it look like pirate ships at his other casino across the street were firing at the Dunes.
From then on, Schumacher said, there was a sense in Las Vegas that destruction at that magnitude was worth witnessing.
The city hasn’t blown up a Strip casino since 2016, when the final tower of the Riviera was leveled for a convention center expansion.
This time, the implosion will clear land for a $1.5 billion baseball stadium for the relocating Oakland Athletics, part of the city’s latest rebrand into a sports hub.
That will leave only the Flamingo from the city’s mob era on the Strip. But, Schumacher said, the Flamingo’s original structures are long gone. The casino was completely rebuilt in the 1990s.
The Tropicana, the third-oldest casino on the Strip, closed in April after welcoming guests for 67 years.
Once known as the “Tiffany of the Strip” for its opulence, it was a frequent haunt of the legendary Rat Pack, while its past under the mob has long cemented its place in Las Vegas lore.
It opened in 1957 with three stories and 300 hotel rooms split into two wings.
As Las Vegas rapidly evolved in the following decades, including a building boom of Strip megaresorts in the 1990s, the Tropicana also underwent major changes. Two hotel towers were added in later years. In 1979, the casino’s beloved $1 million green-and-amber stained glass ceiling was installed above the casino floor.
The Tropicana’s original low-rise hotel wings survived the many renovations, however, making it the last true mob structure on the Strip.
Behind the scenes of the casino’s grand opening, the Tropicana had ties to organized crime, largely through reputed mobster Frank Costello.
Costello was shot in the head in New York weeks after the Tropicana’s debut. He survived, but the investigation led police to a piece of paper in his coat pocket with the Tropicana’s exact earnings figure, revealing the mob’s stake in the casino.
By the 1970s, federal authorities investigating mobsters in Kansas City charged more than a dozen operatives with conspiring to skim $2 million in gambling revenue from Las Vegas casinos, including the Tropicana. Charges connected to the Tropicana alone resulted in five convictions.
Its implosion on Wednesday will be streamed live and televised by local news stations.
There will be no public viewing areas for the event, but fans of the Tropicana did have a chance in April to bid farewell to the vintage Vegas relic.
“Old Vegas, it’s going,” Joe Zappulla, a teary-eyed New Jersey resident, said at the time as he exited the casino, shortly before the locks went on the doors.
ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. — Ten percent of young men in the U.S. show behavior that indicates a gambling problem, compared to 3% of the general population, a new study says.
The Fairleigh Dickinson University survey comes as the National Council on Problem Gambling examined every U.S. state’s gambling laws, finding that customer protection against developing or worsening gambling problems varies widely and could be improved everywhere.
“Gambling is generally marketed as entertainment, and for most gamblers, it’s just that,” said Dan Cassino, a professor of government and politics at Fairleigh Dickinson, and the executive director of the survey, which was released Thursday. “But there’s always some chance of gambling turning into problem behaviors, and online gambling is proving to be much more dangerous than other kinds.”
He said the risks “are closely related to online betting on sports and online slot machines.”
Arnie Wexler, a well-known advocate for people with gambling problems and the former head of New Jersey’s Council on Compulsive Gambling, said young people and their parents constantly contact him for help. He was not involved in the survey.
“All the gambling going on, it’s addicting so many people, and so many young people,” said Wexler. “It’s gotten crazy what’s going on today. We are a nation of addicted gamblers.”
The survey asked respondents to answer the Problem Gambling Severity Index, a nine-question battery asking about several indications of problem gambling behaviors like borrowing money to gamble, or saying that their gambling has caused financial or emotional problems.
Twenty-four percent of men reported at least one problem behavior, but that rose to 45% for men 30 and under.
Individuals are generally considered to have a problem if they have a score of 8 or above on the index. Only about 3% of men scores that indicate a gambling problem, but that figure is 10% among men ages 18 to 30 and 7% among women in the same age group.
The nationwide survey of 801 registered voters, conducted between Aug. 17 and 20, has a margin of error of plus or minus 3.5 percentage points.
The gambling industry has adopted responsible gambling standards, which include allowing people to set limits on their deposits, withdrawals and overall gambling activity; prominently placing phone numbers and web addresses for gambling help lines on their products, and adopting some voluntary limits on advertising.
The National Council on Problem Gambling examined gambling laws in every state, looking at how well they align with the most effective player protections in the group’s internet responsible gambling standards.
The council’s report, released Thursday, found that Connecticut, New Jersey, and Virginia are most aligned with the standards, meeting 49 of 82.
Ten states and Washington, D.C., met 40 or more of the standards: Colorado, Connecticut, District of Columbia, Louisiana, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, and Virginia.
Nine states met between 25 and 39 of the standards: Arizona, Illinois, Indiana, Maine, Maryland, Michigan, Ohio, Oregon, and Vermont.
And 11 states met between 10 and 24 of the standards: Arkansas, Delaware, Florida, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, New Hampshire, Nevada, Rhode Island, West Virginia, and Wyoming.
“This report reflects the patchwork nature of existing regulations and the significant gaps in consumer protections,” said Keith Whyte, the group’s executive director. “We urge legislators and regulators to take immediate steps to close these gaps and work to mitigate gambling-related harm.”
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Follow Wayne Parry on X at www.twitter.com/WayneParryAC
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) — A campaign to bring a casino to the Missouri tourist destination of the Lake of the Ozarks on Tuesday sued to get the proposal on November’s ballot.
The secretary of state’s office last week said the campaign did not collect enough voter signatures for the constitutional amendment to go before voters.
But the Osage River and Gaming Convention said it collected plenty of signatures.
“Verifying every signature on multiple initiative petitions this summer has been a very long process for election officials and we realize mistakes happen,” the group said in a statement. “However, ORGC has always been confident their initiative petition contained a sufficient number of valid signatures from legal voters to qualify for placement on the November 5, 2024, general election ballot and are now asking the Court to do so.”
The state constitution allows casinos only on the Missouri and Mississippi rivers. The petition seeks authorization for one casino on the Osage River, which feeds into the Lake of the Ozarks.
Legal gaming has surged to new heights in Virginia, transforming into a multibillion-dollar annual market as the state’s expanding casinos, sports betting, and online gaming sectors fuel economic growth and reshape the entertainment landscape.
This article was reprinted with permission from Virginia Mercury.
Legal gaming has surged to new heights in Virginia, transforming into a multibillion-dollar annual market as the state’s expanding casinos, sports betting, and online gaming sectors fuel economic growth and reshape the entertainment landscape.
But the industry is currently overseen by multiple state agencies, and splitting those duties has created oversight and enforcement gaps in the rapidly expanding industry. After a 2022 report by the Joint Legislative Audit & Review Commission (JLARC) recommended that Virginia give a single state agency the power to regulate most gambling, efforts began to consolidate regulatory powers by a centralized body.
On Wednesday, the newly created Joint Subcommittee to Study the Feasibility of Establishing the Virginia Gaming Commission for the first time reviewed a proposal that would put the numerous agencies under one roof.
Under the two-year plan before the committee, an independent state agency — dubbed the Virginia Gaming Commission — would consolidate the regulatory powers over online gambling, charity gaming, bingo, live horse racing, fantasy contests, the state’s five licensed casinos, and 10 licenses for Rosie’s Gaming Emporium.
A Virginia Gaming Commission would have regulatory powers over bingo, online gambling, charity gaming, fantasy contests, live horse racing, and the state’s casinos (Ned Oliver/Virginia Mercury)
The sole exception under the proposal is the Virginia Lottery, a state agency created in 1987 after a statewide voter referendum, that would remain a separate entity and continue to oversee and regulate the sale of lottery tickets in the commonwealth.
“As we have gone through the cost-benefit analysis, our team has studied different options, continued stakeholder outreach and working sessions with the agencies, and our team views this option as the best path forward,” Collin Hood, a director at the Virginia-based consulting firm Guidehouse, advised the committee at its meeting in Richmond Wednesday.
The target operating model for the Virginia Gaming Commission, Hood added, is an “efficient, cost-effective and strong regulator.”
If realized under the proposed plan, the new state agency would be able to respond to new regulatory and oversight needs from emerging gaming types, maintain the state’s commitment to horse racing and charitable gaming industries, increase transparency through centralized annual reporting to the public and the state government, and increase accountability for gaming regulation and oversight.
It would also facilitate a consistent statewide problem gambling strategy across all gaming types and clarify the points of contact for key stakeholders, including Virginia State Police, local law enforcement, state legislators and the industry itself.
“Change is difficult, but it is the right thing that we need to do to get a handle on it, otherwise everybody is working in different silos,” Sen. Bryce Reeves, R-Spotsylvania and the committee chair, said in an interview after Wednesday’s meeting.
“There is internet gaming or electronic gaming that happens in the cloud, and we have three different agencies trying to manage that, so there’s some areas where we can save the state a lot of money.”
Heading toward $21 billion in wagers
The plan recommended by Guidehouse, which is drafting various options, “is probably where we’re headed,” Reeves said. “Consolidation is going to help us with enforcement and compliance. If you talk to prosecutors today, they don’t even know what they are looking at.”
Before Virginia’s anti-gambling stance softened in 2018, about $3.4 billion was wagered on state lottery games, charitable gaming and traditional horse racing — a number that grew steadily as the state approved more ways to gamble. By 2025, when four casinos are expected to be open, total wagering could grow to $21 billion.
The JLARC report recommended that the Virginia Lottery should become the primary gambling regulator, noting the agency has already been beefing up its staff to handle sports betting and the four casinos being built around the state.
But the Virginia Racing Commission that is in charge of live horse racing and the horse racing-adjacent Rosie’s slots enterprise, doesn’t have the staff to carry out its regulatory mission, the report found. It further concluded the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services — which regulates forms of charitable gaming like bingo, poker and slots-like machines called electronic pull tabs — also doesn’t have the resources to do its job.
The creation of the Virginia Gaming Commission as a head organization would bring together the existing agencies in an effort to provide the state’s response to a rapidly changing industry, Reeves said.
“I’ve never voted for gambling, and now I find myself the chairman of the committee, only from the simple fact that this all started from charitable gaming and then finding fraud in it,” he said, referring to findings by a General Assembly subcommittee in 2021 that showed corruption in the state’s charitable gaming industry was rampant due to inadequate oversight and conflicts of interest.
The Virginia Lottery could one day be added to the Virginia Gaming Commission’s responsibilities. (Ned Oliver/Virginia Mercury)
“We cleaned that up, and everybody learned some hard lessons,” Reeves said. “What we are trying to do here as legislators is that we don’t have the time or bandwidth to monitor all these different gambling institutions, that shouldn’t be our job. In the end we made a policy decision, it’s not a political decision, we are taking politics out of it.”
‘A good way to govern’
Del. Paul Krizek, D-Fairfax, committee member and an unapologetic critic of legal gaming, applauded the proposed consolidation plan.
“We’re moving judiciously and prudently, and this is a big issue because right now we have a number of different agencies regulating the industry, and they all do it a little bit differently,” Krizek said. “It really needs to be consolidated under one umbrella, that brings expertise and people that know the whole industry.”
Under the current system, legislators like himself don’t have an easy point of contact to go to with concerns, Krizek said.
“It ends up being the loudest voices that catch our ear, and really what we need is an expert agency that can vet all of this and make sure that it especially protects the public. And that’s the kind of input that would come from a Virginia Gaming Commission.”
As the next step, the Guidehouse consultants are tasked with delivering a final report for the committee to vote on at its next meeting in November while lawmakers begin to develop the legislation framework to change the code for the consolidation. The General Assembly would weigh the measure during the 2025 session.
The proposed two-year roadmap toward the creation of the new state agency would formally begin on July 1. After a successful launch of the Virginia Gaming Commission, lawmakers would reconsider consolidating Virginia Lottery operations under the same roof.
“This is the first time in 13 years that I have seen us take a proactive approach to government rather than making a cheese sandwich and saying you’ve got to eat it,” Reeves said. “It’s going to allow more people the opportunity to enter the process and to those setting it up a realistic timeline so it’s not so stressful. This is what I would call a good way to govern.”
Gambling activities generated more than $140 million in revenue for casinos and sportsbooks in Massachusetts last month, with $36.5 million of that haul due to the state as taxes or fees, the Gaming Commission said.
Plainridge Park Casino in Plainville, MGM Springfield and Encore Boston Harbor in Everett generated a cumulative $99.47 million in gross gaming revenue during July, almost two-thirds of it at Encore.
The state’s seven online sports betting companies and the physical sportsbooks at the casinos produced an additional $41.21 million in taxable sports wagering revenue last month.
The Plainville slots parlor is taxed at a rate of 49% of its gross gaming revenue, and the two full-scale casinos pay a 25% tax on their gross gaming revenue.
For July, that worked out to about $28.3 million for the state, the commission said Thursday. Revenues from brick-and-mortar sportsbooks are taxed at 15% while online gambling revenues are taxed at 20%. The commission said July’s sports betting resulted in almost $8.2 million in state taxes.
Bettors in Massachusetts risked about $411.8 million on sporting events that took place in July, with more than 98% of that in wagers placed over the internet rather than in-person. That’s up from about $285.7 million wagered in July 2023. The operators’ monthly revenue represented 10.26% of the total handle.
Since legal gambling began here in 2015, the state has collected $1.82 billion in taxes and fees from casino-style gaming. It has also taken in $166.61 million in taxes and assessments from sports wagering operations that became legal in 2023, the commission said.
Also, the American Gaming Association reported that U.S. commercial gaming revenues grew for the 14th consecutive quarter across the months of April, May and June of this year as expanded gambling options including sports betting and online casino gambling apps have proliferated to more and more states.
The organization said the $17.63 billion in quarterly revenue for the sector generated $3.73 billion in tax revenue for states across the country.
“While sports betting and iGaming continued to drive overall industry revenue growth in the second quarter, new brick-and-mortar property openings in Illinois, Nebraska and Virginia also led to rising traditional commercial gaming revenue,” AGA Vice President of Research David Forman said. “Across the country, land-based gaming markets are seeing mixed year-over-year comparisons due to slower consumer spending economy-wide, which may continue to be a factor through the remainder of 2024.”
RENO, Nev. (AP) — The Nevada Gaming Control Board filed a disciplinary complaint Thursday alleging that one of the largest casinos on the Las Vegas Strip welcomed illegal bookmaking, people with a history of gambling-related felony convictions and individuals linked to organized crime.
Many of the allegations against Resorts World Las Vegas centered on Mathew Bowyer, the Southern California bookmaker who took thousands of sports bets from the former interpreter for baseball star Shohei Ohtani. Bowyer pleaded guilty last week in federal court in Santa Ana, California, to running an illegal gambling business.
The board asked the Nevada Gaming Commission, which has authority over disciplinary action, to fine the company and take what experts say would be rare action against Resorts World’s gaming license.
“The commission has the power to decide what it wants to do with this,” said Michael Green, an associate professor of history at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, who has long studied Las Vegas’ casino business. “They can decide to revoke the license. They can decide no, that’s too much, there should be fines. There are executives who might be forced out. So they have some latitude here. And they’re always hesitant to go that far, because you can’t be sure of the long-term effects.”
The commission did not immediately respond to an after-hours message Thursday seeking comment on the timing of a decision.
Resorts World said it is communicating with the board to resolve the issues so it can focus on its guests and nearly 5,000 employees.
“We are committed to doing business with the utmost integrity and in compliance with applicable laws and industry guidelines,” it said in a statement.
The 31-page complaint alleges that Resorts World allowed Bowyer to play 80 separate days over about 15 months, while repeatedly failing to verify his source of funding. Bowyer lost over $6.6 million during that time, while the casino extended gifts, discounts and flights on its private jet, according to the complaint.
Bowyer was banned from Resorts World on Oct. 6, 2023, after a federal warrant was executed to search his home. Prosecutors said Bowyer ran an illegal gambling business for at least five years in Southern California and Las Vegas and took wagers from more than 700 bettors, including Ohtani’s former interpreter, Ippei Mizuhara.
Diane Bass, Bowyer’s attorney, did not respond to a message seeking comment.
The complaint lists 12 counts against Resorts World — six related to Bowyer — including failing to distance from suspected illegal bookmakers, failure of casino hosts to report suspected illegal bookings and hosts referring prospective customers to suspected illegal bookmakers.
Other counts were related to hundreds of thousands of dollars in credit to others with histories of illegal gambling convictions or organized crime — one of whom was convicted of conducting an illegal gambling business and another who was convicted in a large-scale internet gambling operation.
The complaint also alleges that Resorts World employees failed to report unusual or suspicious activity and violations of its anti-money laundering program to their superiors. Members of the program committee acknowledged during the board’s investigation that Bowyer’s source of funding did not justify his level of play, according to the complaint.
“This culture results in the perception and/or reality that Resorts World is an avenue to launder funds derived from illegal activity and/or to further criminal activity causing damage to the reputation of the state of Nevada and Nevada’s gaming industry,” the board said in the complaint.
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Associated Press writer Rio Yamat in Las Vegas contributed to this report.
MINNEAPOLIS — A Twin Cities woman faces dozens of felony charges after authorities say a raid of her residence yielded thousands of illegal pull tabs, scratch-offs and other games.
The Hennepin County Sheriff’s Office says its new Financial Crimes Unit was able to track down the woman they say was accepting illegal bets on Facebook.
HCSO
The sheriff’s office says an individual stack of cards shown in the image above represents a single game with identical serial numbers. Ten of those games equal a single felony charge.
HCSO
Deputies also seized a “rifle and handgun with an extended magazine that were easily accessible to multiple young children in the home.”
Authorities didn’t disclose her identity or the location of her residence.
Stephen Swanson is a web producer at CBS Minnesota. A 21-year station veteran, Stephen was a floor director for a decade before moving to the newsroom, where he focuses on general assignment reporting.
This morning, following a wellspring of reports about Joe Biden’s declining mental acuity, it became a very good time to be a Kamala Harris supporter. It’s been five days since Biden’s disastrous debate against Donald Trump, when he trailed off, got confused by simple questions, and could not for the life of him keep his mouth closed. His handlers have been trying to quell the calls for Biden to step down ever since he stepped off the stage — first, by saying that he’s fine, get over it; and then, by telling doubters they have no say. Then, starting Tuesday afternoon, there was a surge on political-betting markets against Biden, and that Kamala Harris would replace him as the Democratic nominee. What is going on?
On Wednesday morning, Harris overtook Biden on political-betting market PredictIt — one of the world’s largest off-shore, anything-goes political-betting markets — as the more likely Democratic nominee. That only accelerated following a New York Times report of Biden telling an ally that his next few public appearances were crucial, with her odds spiking above 50 percent. (The White House has since denied the report, calling it “absolutely false.”)
The momentum for Harris had been building since noon the previous day, when Biden’s odds of being named the Democratic nominee fell below 50 percent on the bookmaker. On Polymarket, another betting site, the odds of Biden dropping out rose as high as 79 percent. At the same time, political bettors on PredictIt sent Harris’s odds rising as high as 40 percent during a surge of trading, where 52,000 futures contracts betting on her exchanged hands by midmorning, nearly as many as the 71,700 for Biden. It was her best showing so far, and reflected a somewhat more informed political market that was, just a few days ago, hoping that Gavin Newsom would replace Biden in November. (One reason: Harris would probably have access to the millions of dollars already raised.)
Look — I covera lotof bonkersmarkets. These kinds of bets are something like crypto or meme stocks for political nerds. When you have about 50,000 contracts trading hands in a single day, that would very charitably be called shallow — in dollar amounts, the absolute maximum that traded would be around $20,000, and that’s if every bet was at the maximum price. Not only is that very small, it shows how easily this market could be gamed by a single person. Rutgers statistics professor Harry Crane has pointed out that fairly common betting strategies for covering losses could explain why there were differences between some markets — exactly the kind of thing that could distort what the real odds are. It’s not far-fetched to say that bets on Harris are no more meaningful than Barron Trump’s aborted cryptocurrency. But then again, maybe somebody will hit the jackpot.
This post was updated to reflect Harris’ rising odds past 50 percent on Wednesday morning.
A 170-year-old rivalry is flaring up as Kansas lawmakers try to snatch the Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs away from Missouri even though economists long ago concluded subsidizing pro sports isn’t worth the cost.
The Kansas Legislature’s top leaders endorsed helping the Chiefs and professional baseball’s Kansas City Royals finance new stadiums in Kansas ahead of a special session set to convene Tuesday. The plan would authorize state bonds for stadium construction and pay them off with revenues from sports betting, the Kansas Lottery and additional tax dollars generated in and around the new venues.
The states’ border runs through the metropolitan area of about 2.3 million people, and the teams would move only about 25 miles (40 kilometers) west.
Decades of research have concluded a pro sports franchise doesn’t boost a local economy much, if any, because it mostly captures existing spending from other places in the same community. But for Kansas officials, spending would at least leave Missouri and come to Kansas, and one-upping Missouri has its own allure.
“I’ve wanted to see the Chiefs in Kansas my whole life, but I hope we can do it in a way that is enriching for these communities, rather than creating additional burdens for them,” said state Rep. Jason Probst, a Democrat from central Kansas.
The rivalry between Kansas and Missouri can be traced as far back as the lead-up to the Civil War, before Kansas was even a state. People from Missouri came from the east, hoping in vain to create another slave state like their own. Both sides looted, burned and killed across the border.
There also was a century-long sports rivalry between the University of Kansas and University of Missouri. And for years the two states burned through hundreds of millions of dollars to lure businesses to one side of the border or the other in the pursuit of jobs. They called an uneasy truce in 2019.
Missouri officials are pledging to be equally aggressive to keep the Royals and Chiefs, and not only because they view them as economic assets.
“They’re sources of great pride,” said Missouri state Rep. John Patterson, a suburban Kansas City Republican expected to be the next state House speaker.
Kansas legislators see the Chiefs and Royals in play because voters on the Missouri side refused in April to extend a local sales tax for the upkeep of their side-by-side stadiums. Lawmakers also argue that failing to take action risks having one or both teams leave the Kansas City area, although economists are skeptical that the threat is real.
While the stadium complex lease runs through January 2031, Kansas officials argue the teams must make decisions soon for new or renovated stadiums to be ready by then. They also are promising the Chiefs a stadium with a dome or retractable roof that can host Super Bowls, college basketball Final Fours and huge indoor concerts.
“You’ve got this asset and all the businesses that move there as a result, or are created there,” said Kansas state Rep. Sean Tarwater, a Republican from the edge of his state’s Kansas City suburbs and a leader of the relocation effort. “You’ll get commerce out of that area every day.”
Roughly 60% of the area’s population lives in Missouri, but the Kansas side is growing more quickly.
Despite the legislative push in Kansas, Missouri lawmakers aren’t rushing to propose alternatives. Republican Missouri Gov. Mike Parson told reporters Thursday that his state is “not just going to roll over,” but also said, “We’re just in the first quarter” of the contest.
Both states hold primary elections on Aug. 3, with most legislative seats on the ballot this year. The April vote in Missouri on the local stadium tax suggested subsidizing pro sports teams could be a political loser in that state, particularly with the conservative-leaning electorate in GOP primaries.
“In Missouri, the Republican Party used to be led by a business wing that might be in favor of this sort of thing, but in the Trump era, that’s not the case,” said David Kimball, a University of Missouri-St. Louis political science professor. “The more conservative, the more Trump-oriented wing, they’re not big supporters of spending taxpayer money on much of anything.”
Kansas Republicans face pressure on the right to avoid having the state pick economic winners and losers. For Probst, the Democrat, the concern is using government “to make rich people richer,” meaning team owners.
Economists have studied pro sports teams and subsidies for stadiums since at least the 1980s. J.C. Bradbury, an economics and finance professor from Kennesaw State University in Georgia, said studies show subsidizing stadiums is “a terrible channel for economic growth.”
While supporters of the Kansas effort have cited a report indicating large, positive economic implications, Bradbury said “phony” reports are a staple of stadium campaigns.
“Stadiums are poor public investment, and I would say it’s a near unanimous consensus,” said Bradbury, who has reviewed studies and done them himself.
Yet more than 30 lobbyists have registered to push for a stadium-financing plan from Kansas lawmakers, and the Kansas Chamber of Commerce’s CEO has called this a “once in a lifetime opportunity” to attract the Chiefs.
The Chiefs not only have won three Super Bowl titles in five years, but they have an especially strong fanbase that has expanded because of tight end Travis Kelce’s romance with pop star Taylor Swift.
Host cities find the National Football League attractive because franchises are valued in the billions and wealthy owners and celebrity players command a media spotlight, said Judith Grant Long, an associate professor of sports management and urban planning at the University of Michigan and a director of its center on sports venues.
“All of these come together in a potent brew for politicians, civic officials and local business interests hoping to capitalize on its influence,” she said.
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LOS ANGELES — A former top executive for major Las Vegas casinos was set to appear before a federal judge on Wednesday after admitting he allowed an illegal bookmaker to gamble millions of dollars at the MGM Grand and pay off debts in cash.
Scott Sibella pleaded guilty in January to violating federal anti-money laundering rules that require casinos to file reports of suspicious transactions. He faces up to five years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
Following Sibella’s guilty plea, the MGM Grand and nearby Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas settled a related U.S. Justice Department money laundering probe. The resorts agreed to pay a combined $7.45 million, submit to an external review and step up their compliance programs.
Sibella’s attorneys, Jeffrey Rutherford in Los Angeles and John Spilotro in Las Vegas, were seeking leniency and a sentence of probation from U.S. District Judge Dolly Gee in Los Angeles. They submitted testimonial letters of support to the judge on Friday, including one from Clark County Sheriff Kevin McMahill, the elected head of the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department.
Rutherford and Spilotro did not respond Tuesday to email messages from The Associated Press.
The bookmaker central to Sibella’s case, Wayne Nix, is a former minor league baseball player who lives in Newport Coast, California. He’s awaiting sentencing after pleading guilty in April 2022 to operating an illegal gambling business and filing a false tax return.
According to his plea agreement with the government, Sibella allowed Nix to gamble at MGM Grand and affiliated properties with illicit proceeds generated from the illegal gambling business without notifying the casinos’ compliance department.
Sibella told federal investigators in January 2022 “that he had ‘heard that Nix was in the booking business’ and he ‘couldn’t figure out how he had all the money he gambled with.’”
“I didn’t want to know because of my position,” Sibella told investigators. “I stay out of it. If we know, we can’t allow them to gamble. I didn’t ask, I didn’t want to know I guess because he wasn’t doing anything to cheat the casino.”
Sibella was president and chief operating officer of the MGM Grand for eight years and then president of Resorts World Las Vegas until 2023. Federal prosecutors say Ippei Mizuhara, Los Angeles Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani’s former interpreter, transferred money he stole from the Japanese superstar to Resorts World in a scheme to pay off debts to illegal bookmakers. Sibella is not implicated in that case, which also is part of the broad federal investigation into sports gambling.
Separately, Nevada casino regulators are considering revoking or suspending Sibella’s state gambling license and fining him up to $750,000. A complaint filed April 30 by state Gaming Control Board investigators has not yet been considered by the Nevada Gaming Commission.
Sibella held top executive positions at The Mirage and Treasure Island casinos on the Las Vegas Strip before becoming president of the more than 6,800-room MGM Grand in 2011. He left the company in February 2019 and joined Resorts World Las Vegas before Malaysia-based Genting Group opened the $4.3 billion, 66-floor resort in June 2021.
He was dismissed by Resorts World in September 2023 after the company said he “violated company policies and the terms of his employment.”
While other cities have embraced poker rooms, and Dallas is still figuring out what it wants to do with them, things aren’t looking so good for poker rooms in Farmers Branch. Today, the Farmers Branch City Council will consider whether to allow the card rooms in the city…
Michael Porter Jr. said he received individual texts from Nuggets teammates checking on him after a difficult week in his personal life. His brother Coban, 22, was sentenced to six years in prison Friday for killing a woman in a drunk driving crash last year. And his brother Jontay, 24, was banned for life from the NBA earlier in the week after being investigated in a sports betting scandal.
“Each one of them texted me separately and just told me they’ve got my back. If I need anything, they’ve got me,” Porter said Saturday night after a 114-103 Game 1 win at Ball Arena. “Yeah, a lot of people were reaching out. Friends, family. So to have these guys understand why I missed practice yesterday and just have my back has been big for me.”
Porter’s absence from practice Friday was because he appeared in court that morning for Coban’s sentencing hearing. MPJ addressed the family of the victim, Kathy Limon Rothman, in the courtroom, saying, “I understand your family’s pain and hurt.”
In his return to basketball Saturday, he registered 19 points and eight rebounds against the Lakers.
“We’re human, so we carry our emotions and the things that go on off the court onto the court,” Porter said. “But I’m mentally tough. I’ve been through a lot through my whole career, so it was just another one of those things that I had to try to play through.”
Jontay Porter was on a two-way deal with the Raptors’ organization when he allegedly shared information about his health with an individual he knew to be a sports bettor March 20. After another sports bettor subsequently placed an $80,000 parlay bet that Porter would underperform in Toronto’s game that night, Porter played only three minutes, claiming he felt ill. A league investigation also found Porter placed bets on NBA games, including one wager on the Raptors to lose a game.
When the investigation first came to light, Michael Porter Jr. said he doubted that his brother would jeopardize his career by gambling on games.
“Definitely tried to compartmentalize,” Michael Porter Jr. said Saturday. “Some bad and sad stuff happened to a couple of my brothers. But I’ve got 15, 16 more brothers in here. So I knew I had to be there for them. And come in here and do my job and try to prepare to do it at a high level.”
Russillo opens the show with his thoughts on the play-in games and the end of the Warriors dynasty (0:34). Then, Frank Isola joins to explain what went wrong for Golden State, share which eliminated team needs to hit the reset button, and discuss the Knicks’ ceiling (18:44). Next, comedian Dan Soder comes on to share why he chose comedy and details how jokes are created (55:13). Plus, Ceruti and Kyle join for Life Advice (89:51). How do we kick the bad player out of our pick-up games?
The Ringer is committed to responsible gaming. Please check out rg-help.com to find out more, or listen to the end of the episode for additional details.
Host: Ryen Russillo Guests: Frank Isola and Dan Soder Producers: Steve Ceruti, Kyle Crichton, and Mike Wargon
ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. — Add investors to the list of people that opponents of smoking in casinos are enlisting in hopes of banning the practice.
A national non-smoking group and a Michigan health system have placed shareholder proposals on the agenda of annual meetings for two major gambling companies and are likely to add a third.
The measures ask the companies to study potential financial benefits of going smoke-free at their casino properties.
And while it remains to be seen whether the proposals will be approved by investors, the move represents yet another aspect of an effort by casino smoking foes to leave no stone unturned in their drive to end smoking in gambling halls. In New Jersey, that has included pushing lawmakers to legislate a ban, and filing a lawsuit in state court to overturn an indoor smoking law that exempts casinos.
Proposals from Trinity Health, a Michigan-based health care system, and the American Nonsmokers’ Rights Foundation will be voted on by shareholders of Boyd Gaming and Bally’s Corporation during their annual meetings this year. And an identical measure has been submitted to Caesars Entertainment, which has not yet announced the date of its annual meeting.
“Many shareholders will be surprised to learn that these casino companies still allow indoor smoking, even in the year 2024, and that the policy is harming the very workers who were instrumental in the companies generating billions of dollars in revenue in 2023,” said Cynthia Hallett, president of the non-smokers group. “If casinos will not do the right thing on their own, then we will continue to explore every avenue to protect the well-being of workers and patrons.”
Whether to ban smoking is one of the most controversial issues not only in Atlantic City casinos, but in other states where workers have expressed concern about secondhand smoke, including Rhode Island, Pennsylvania, Kansas and Virginia.
“We risk our lives every day just by going to work,” said Pete Naccarelli, a longtime Borgata dealer and a leader of Casino Employees Against Smoking Effects, a group of workers pushing to end smoking at Atlantic City’s nine casinos. ““It’s unacceptable, and long past time for casino corporations to end this outdated business practice. The least the casinos can do is study the impact of indoor smoking.”
Historically, shareholder proposals face long odds of being approved and implemented. A study last month by the Conference Board found that 913 shareholder proposals were filed in 2023, and 71% were voted on, receiving an average support of 23%.
The gambling companies oppose smoking bans and the shareholder measures calling for a study. Bally’s, Boyd and Caesars claimed the proposals involve ordinary business maters best decided by company management, and that the requests seek to micromanage the company.
But the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, ruling on objections from Boyd, rejected those claims and refused to allow the company to quash the shareholder proposals. Because the same proposal was submitted to all three companies, the agency’s ruling is likely to affect each of them.
In recommending a vote against the proposal, Bally’s called it “unwarranted and unreasonable.” It supported the repeal of a smoking ban last year in Shreveport, Louisiana.
“The company is committed to providing a first-class entertainment experience to both its smoking and non-smoking customers, and compliance with local smoking laws ensures that customers have access to comparable gaming experiences with all other casinos in each market,” Bally’s wrote.
In its own note to shareholders, Boyd Gaming likewise urges them to vote against it.
“The proposal asks for a report on implementing a smoke-free policy, but we believe this proposal is the first step toward forcing our company to unilaterally adopt such a policy, regardless of the actions of our competitors,” it wrote. It added that Boyd has already been harmed by smoking bans in its Midwest and Southern markets, and would put itself at a competitive disadvantage by banning smoking.
Caesars Entertainment did not respond to requests for comment Tuesday and Wednesday. But in a letter to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, Caesars said the health of employees and customers is important. It added that smoking policy for its properties involves numerous factors including customer preferences, local regulations, and the policies of competitors.
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Follow Wayne Parry on X, formerly Twitter, at www.twitter.com/WayneParryAC
LAS VEGAS — In the 1971 film “Diamonds are Forever,” James Bond stays in a swanky suite at the Tropicana Las Vegas.
“I hear that the Hotel Tropicana is quite comfortable,” Agent 007 says.
It was the Tropicana’s heyday. The lavish casino was a frequent haunt of the legendary Rat Pack, while its past under the mob cemented its place in Vegas lore.
But after welcoming guests for 67 years, the doors to the Las Vegas Strip’s third-oldest casino will be chained shut at noon Tuesday and demolition is slated for October to make room for a $1.5 billion Major League Baseball stadium — part of the city’s latest rebrand as a hub for sports entertainment.
“It’s time. It’s ran its course,” Charlie Granado, a bartender at the Tropicana for 38 years, said of the casino’s closure. “It makes me sad but on the other hand, it’s a happy ending.”
The population of Clark County, which includes Las Vegas, had just surpassed 100,000 when the Tropicana opened on a Strip surrounded by vast, open desert. It cost $15 million to build three stories with 300 rooms split into two wings.
Its manicured lawns and elegant showroom earned it the nickname “Tiffany of the Strip.” There was a towering tulip-shaped fountain near the entrance, mosaic tiles and mahogany-paneled walls throughout.
Black and white photographs from that time give a view into what it was like inside the Tropicana at its height, when it frequently hosted A-list stars in its showroom — from Elizabeth Taylor and Debbie Reynolds to Frank Sinatra and Sammy Davis Jr.
Mel Tormé and Eddie Fisher performed at the Tropicana. Gladys Knight and Wayne Newton have held residencies there.
In a city known for reinvention, the Tropicana itself underwent major changes as Las Vegas evolved. Two hotel towers were added in later years. In 1979, a $1 million green-and-amber stained glass ceiling was installed above the casino floor.
Barbara Boggess was 26 when she started working at the Tropicana in 1978 as a linen room attendant.
“The Tropicana was pretty much sitting here all by itself,” Boggess said. “It was desert all around. It used to take me 10 minutes to get to work. Now it takes an hour.”
Now 72, Boggess has seen the Tropicana through its many iterations. There was the 1980s rebrand as “The Island of Las Vegas,” with a swim-up blackjack table at the pool, and the South Beach-themed renovation completed in 2011.
Today, only the low-rise hotel room wings remain of the original Tropicana structure. Yet the casino still conjures up vintage Vegas nostalgia.
“It does give an old Vegas vibe. When you first walk in, you see the stained glass and the low ceilings,” JT Seumala, a Las Vegas resident who visited the casino in March, said. “It does feel like you step back in time for a moment.”
Seumala and his husband stayed at the Tropicana as a way to pay tribute to the landmark. They roamed the casino floor and hotel, turning down random hallways and exploring the convention center. They tried their luck at blackjack and roulette and made conversation with a cocktail server who had worked there for 25 years. At the end of their stay, they pocketed a few red $5 poker chips to remember the casino.
Behind the scenes of the casino’s opening decades ago, the Tropicana had ties to organized crime, largely through reputed mobster Frank Costello.
Weeks after the grand opening, Costello was shot in the head in New York. Police found in his coat pocket a piece of paper with the Tropicana’s exact earnings figure. The note also mentioned “money to be skimmed” for Costello’s associates, according to a post on The Mob Museum’s website looking back on the Tropicana’s history.
By the 1970s, federal authorities investigating mobsters in Kansas City charged more than a dozen mob operatives with conspiring to skim nearly $2 million in gambling revenue from Las Vegas casinos, including the Tropicana. Charges connected to the Tropicana alone resulted in five convictions.
But the famed hotel-casino also saw many years of mob-free success. It was home to the city’s longest running show, “Folies Bergere.” The topless revue, imported from Paris, featured what is now one of the most recognizable Las Vegas icons: the feathered showgirl.
During its nearly 50-year run, “Folies Bergere” featured elaborate costumes and stage sets, original music that at one time was played by a live orchestra, line dancers, magic shows, acrobats and comedy.
The cabaret was featured in the 1964 Elvis Presley film “Viva Las Vegas.” Magicians Siegfried Fischbacher and Roy Horn got their start in the show.
Today, the site at the south end of the Las Vegas Strip intersects with a major thoroughfare named for the Tropicana. It is surrounded by the towering megaresorts that Las Vegas is now known for.
But nearby are the homes of the NFL’s Las Vegas Raiders, who left Oakland, California, in 2020, and the city’s first major league professional team, the NHL’s Vegas Golden Knights.
The ballpark planned for the land beneath the Tropicana is expected to open in 2028.
“There’s a lot of controversy as far as if it should stay or should it go,” Seumala said. “But the thing that I do love about Vegas is that it’s always reinventing itself.”
MACAO — After more than 40 years, Macao’s horse racing track hosted its final races on Saturday, bringing an end to the sport in the city famous for its massive casinos.
In January, the city’s government said it would terminate its contract with the Macao Jockey Club in April. The decision came at the request of the Macao Horse Race Company, which cited operational challenges as part of the reasons for the closure.
On Saturday, gamblers congregated in the half-full stands and placed their final bets. Some tourists also visited the track.
Mai Wan-zun, a student from mainland China in Macao, said she wanted to get a taste of the atmosphere. “We could come to see horse racing here in Macao, but not in mainland China,” she said.
Helena Chong, a Macao resident, decided to visit the race course for the first and last time to see what it’s all about.
“It’s a pity to see the end of all this gambling and entertainment,” she said.
Horse racing in the former Portuguese colony has struggled with economic challenges in recent years and has yet to rebound from the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. Its jockey club had accumulated operating losses of over $311 million, the Macau News Agency earlier reported.
Under the termination arrangement, the horse racing firm had pledged to arrange for transportation of owners’ horses to other locations by March 2025, and handle the company’s employees according to the law, the government said.
In neighboring Hong Kong, horse-racing remains popular and profitable. Its jockey club runs various gambling activities and is the city’s major donor of many charity works.
Newburyport was not exactly Las Vegas, but there were four announcements for beano players in this day’s newspaper in 1937. That night, head to the Vets’ at 49 Pleasant St. for a chance to win a $7 door prize. Or…
The casino world is changing fast, thanks to new tech and the way people like to play games these days. In 2024, there are all kinds of jobs popping up. You’ve got the techy jobs that make sure online games run smoothly and the classic positions that keep things fun and running like clockwork. There’s a huge need for people experienced in all areas as the industry is showing exponential growth.
However, it is not only about the knowledge related to gambling games. Tech skills are even more important, including advanced skills related to online payment processors, security, and blockchain technology, thanks to the growing number of online casinos that accept crypto.
In fact, according to outlookindia.com, blockchain has brought around the decentralization of betting processes, reducing the reliance on intermediaries and providing a more autonomous and user-driven betting environment.
So, even those looking for a career in the crypto or blockchain industries can start their journey at an online casino. Whether online or land-based, here are some of the biggest, highest-paying casino jobs you can find this year:
1. Director of Slot Operations
The person in charge of all the slot machines at a casino is called the Director of Slot Operations. They make sure everything with the slots works perfectly. This job has a nice paycheck, with people earning between $70,000 and $131,000 a year.
It’s a mix of knowing your tech and being able to lead people. These pros keep the slots running smoothly, bring in new games, and think up ways to make playing even more fun for folks. With casinos getting bigger and going online, there’s a real need for directors who are good with gadgets and can steer their teams to meet the casino’s big plans.
2. Casino Accountant
A Casino Accountant plays a key role in managing the financial flow within a casino. This position offers a salary range from $32,000 to $104,500 annually.
Accountants in this field are responsible for tracking the money that comes in and goes out, making sure all financial transactions are accurate and lawful.
But it’s not just about counting money; they also handle the finances for gaming chips and the big bucks that flow through a casino. With the rules in the gaming world always changing, accountants have to be sharp and make sure everything’s following the law.
3. Casino Controller
A Casino Controller oversees the financial health of a casino, with a salary range typically between $75,000 and $100,000 per year. This role involves detailed financial analysis, budgeting, and strategic planning to ensure the casino’s profitability.
Controllers are crucial for spotting financial trends, managing risks, and identifying growth opportunities. They work closely with other department heads to make informed decisions that affect the entire operation.
4. Gaming Investigator
A Gaming Investigator ensures that casino operations follow state and federal laws. With salaries around $98,500 per year, these professionals focus on preventing illegal activities within casinos.
Their work involves monitoring gaming activities through video and audio surveillance, conducting investigations, and reporting any compliance issues.
Gaming Investigators play a crucial role in maintaining the integrity of gaming operations, ensuring that both employees and patrons follow the rules. Their expertise in casino games and security measures allows them to detect and prevent cheating and theft.
Understanding the role of a platform that consolidates gaming options can provide valuable insights into the evolving landscape of the casino industry, particularly for individuals seeking rapid career advancement opportunities in this dynamic field.
5. Casino Manager
With a salary range from $35,000 to $91,500 annually, managers are responsible for supervising staff, managing security, and monitoring gaming facilities.
They also ensure compliance with local and state regulations. A key goal for casino managers is to maintain an environment that is profitable while staying compliant with all gaming laws. Strong communication skills are essential, as managers coordinate with staff, other management teams, and customers to ensure high-quality service.
6. Casino Floor Supervisor
The salary depends on how popular the casino is. That is the main reason why we can once again see a bigger range. The average salary goes between $34,000 and $76,000.
Supervisors ensure that games operate smoothly, enforce rules, and provide a secure environment for guests. Part of the job involves interacting with customers to solve issues and improve the gaming experience. The same position also monitors the performance of casino staff and provides feedback or training when necessary.
7. Poker Manager
A Poker Manager is in charge of the poker area in a casino and can earn a salary ranging from $44,500 to $73,500 every year. In this leadership position, the manager supervises poker dealers and makes sure all gambling rules are followed.
Working closely with customers, especially during big events or when sorting out issues, is a big part of the role. The manager also looks after the poker section’s finances, manages money coming in and going out, and keeps track of all transactions to ensure they’re correct.
Part of the job includes recruiting and training new employees, plus making sure the poker space is safe and inviting for everyone who comes to play.
8. Slot Supervisor
A Slot Supervisor oversees the slot machine section in a casino, earning between $50,000 and $73,000 a year. This job involves making sure the slots area runs smoothly, the machines are kept in good condition, and customers are happy with the service.
The supervisor checks how well the slot machines are doing, fixes any tech problems, and makes sure winners get paid correctly. Part of the job is also to help and guide the slot attendants to make sure customers get the best service possible.
As gaming goes more digital, slot supervisors need to keep up with new tech and trends in games. Being able to lead a team and create a fun and friendly place for customers to play is key to doing well in this job.
9. Pit Supervisor
This job is all about watching over the games to make sure they’re played right, leading the team, and talking with customers to sort out any issues and make sure they’re happy.
A Pit Supervisor also has to stay up-to-date with what’s new in gaming to keep the casino’s operations sharp. The average salary is between $46,000 and $69,000.
The Bottom Line
The casino industry is packed with all sorts of jobs that suit a bunch of different skills and interests. You could be in charge of the slot machines, run the gaming floor, or make sure everything’s following the law.
Each job is important for the casino to succeed. With tech getting better and rules always changing, there’s a growing need for skilled workers in these roles as the industry keeps expanding.
