After the success of New York mobile gambling expansion, California gambling bills are set to go before voters this fall. As many as four different forms of regulation could find their way to the ballot, all in an effort to bring sports betting to the state. This weeks video also discusses Caesars announcement that they will sell one of their Las Vegas casinos on the Strip.
Caesars has said that they plan to sell one of their Las Vegas Strip casinos, and that an announcement could be made about that sale any day now. No one outside of the company knows which of their properties will be sold, only that it will be one located on the Las Vegas Strip. That’s not a lot of help, considering how many they have. But to be clear, we do not believe that Caesars would sell Caesar’s Palace, or even Nobu which is part of that Caesar’s Palace complex.
Also, they have just announced a rebranding of Bally’s as the Las Vegas Horseshoe, so that’s probably not the property either. The LINQ is the entrance to their High Roller Ferris Wheel, while Harrah’s has way too much brand value. Additionally, the Flamingo is a Las Vegas landmark while Paris is co-hosting the WSOP this summer, so they are probably not on the market. The Cromwell has the best location in all of Las Vegas, which leaves only Planet Hollywood. But who knows…
So California gambling expansion? After New York State has blazed a trail, California (with twice the population) has a potential sports betting market that is massive. Recent surveys of voters show that 45% are in favor of regulating sports betting, while 22% are undecided. The last 33% are opposed to the idea, but that’s not too bad for something like gambling.
There may be as many as four California gambling bills on the ballot when voters head to the polls this fall. But with Tribal Gaming, card rooms, race tracks, and outside corporate interests all fighting tooth and nail for a piece of the profits, things could be protruded and ugly.
