Gambling in the USA
Wind Creek Hospitality Closes on Sands Bethlehem Purchase
Alabama’s Poarch Band of Creek Indians Adds $1.3B Property to Gaming Operations
PCI Gaming Authority D/B/A Wind Creek Hospitality (WCH), an authority of the Poarch Band of Creek Indians, has finalized the purchase of the Sands Casino Resort in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, for a total enterprise value of $1.3 billion. The property will be rebranded as Wind Creek Bethlehem (WCB).
WCB will welcome guests to the upscale, Las Vegas-style resort, located in the heart of the Lehigh Valley of Pennsylvania, approximately 80 miles from New York City. Amenities currently include a 282-room AAA four diamond hotel, a 183,000 square foot casino floor featuring 3,000 slots and electronic table games, 200 table games, numerous food and beverage outlets, a 150,000 square foot retail mall, and a multi-purpose event center.
Over time, WCH plans to invest an estimated $340 million in updating and expanding the property to include construction of a 300-room hotel adjacent to the casino; a 300,000 square foot adventure and water park at the existing No. 2 Machine Shop Bethlehem Steel site; and a 400-to-450-room hotel adjacent to the adventure park. All expected to bring additional jobs, tourism and economic growth to Lehigh Valley.
WCH President/CEO, James Dorris commented “One of the things that drew us to this property is the quality and experience of the service-minded employees. Each of the nine executives has accepted a multi-year contract with us and we hope that all team members want to continue their work here as part of the Wind Creek family. We will need them as we grow the offerings at Wind Creek Bethlehem. ”
The purchase of its largest property to date provides a significant opportunity for WCH to diversify its holdings as well and to offer the Wind Creek Rewards program and online WindCreekCasino.com to millions of new customers. Travel perks offered by the Wind Creek Rewards program to some of the most alluring resorts in the Caribbean: Renaissance Aruba Resort and Casino and Renaissance Curacao Resort and Casino, both owned by WCH, are expected to be particularly appealing escapes for WCB customers during the cold winter months.
Wind Creek Hospitality funded the acquisition with a combination of existing cash on its balance sheet and new debt financing. Credit Suisse has provided financing for the transaction. Wind Creek Hospitality anticipates that the additional cash flow resulting from the acquisition will allow it to pay down debt on an accelerated basis after closing. Innovation Capital, LLC is exclusive financial advisor and Cooper Levenson P.A. is legal counsel to Wind Creek Hospitality in connection with the transaction.
About Wind Creek Hospitality:
Wind Creek Hospitality is an authority of the Poarch Band of Creek Indians. Wind Creek Hospitality manages the Tribe’s gaming facilities including: Wind Creek Atmore, Wind Creek Wetumpka, Wind Creek Montgomery, Wa She Shu Casino in Nevada, Renaissance Aruba Resort & Casino, Renaissance Curacao Resort & Casino as well as racetracks in Alabamaand Florida. For more information, visit: https://windcreekhospitality.com/.
About the Poarch Band of Creek Indians:
The Poarch Band of Creek Indians is the only federally recognized Indian Tribe in the state of Alabama, operating as a sovereign nation with its own system of government and bylaws. The Tribe operates a variety of economic enterprises, which employ thousands of area residents. For more information, visit: www.pci-nsn.gov.
Source: Wind Creek Hospitality
Gambling in the USA
New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement Announces September 2024 Total Gaming Revenue Results
New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement announced the September 2024 total gaming revenue results.
Casino Win:
Based upon filings with the Division of Gaming Enforcement, Casino Win for the nine casino hotel properties was $230.6 million for September 2024, reflecting a decrease of 6.5% when compared to $246.5 million reported in September 2023. Year-to-date Casino Win for the nine casino hotel properties was $2.15 billion, which is a decrease of 0.9% compared to the year-to-date Casino Win for September 2023.
Internet Gaming Win:
For the month of September 2024, Internet Gaming Win reported by casinos and their partners was $208.1 million, reflecting growth of 27.1% when compared to $163.8 million reported in September 2023. For the year-to-date period, Internet Gaming Win reported by casinos and their partners was $1.73 billion, reflecting growth of 23.2% when compared to $1.41 billion for the prior year-to-date period.
Sports Wagering Gross Revenue:
Sports Wagering Gross Revenue reported by casinos, racetracks, and their partners was $119.6 million for September 2024, reflecting a 7.6% increase when compared to $111.1 million reported in September 2023. Sports Wagering Gross Revenue reported by casinos, racetracks, and their partners was $835.4 million for the year-to-date period, reflecting a 17.8% increase when compared to $709.0 million reported in the prior year-to-date period.
Total Gaming Revenue:
Total Gaming Revenue reported by casinos, racetracks, and their partners was $558.3 million for September 2024, reflecting a 7.1% increase from $521.5 million reported in September 2023. For year-todate, Total Gaming Revenue reported by casinos, racetracks, and their partners was $4.72 billion, reflecting a 10.1% increase from $4.29 billion reported in the prior year-to-date period.
The three Detroit casinos reported $101.98 million in monthly aggregate revenue (AGR) for the month of September 2024, of which $101.23 million was generated from table games and slots, and $755,519 from retail sports betting.
The September market shares were:
• MGM, 47%
• MotorCity, 31%
• Hollywood Casino at Greektown, 22%
Monthly Table Games, Slot Revenue, and Taxes
The casinos’ revenue for table games and slots for the month of September 2024 increased 1.2% when compared to the same month last year. September’s monthly revenue was 8.6% lower when compared to the previous month, August 2024. From Jan. 1 through Sept. 30, the Detroit casinos’ table games and slots revenue increased by 1.0% compared to the same period last year.
The casinos’ monthly gaming revenue results were mixed compared to September 2023:
• MGM, up 6.6% to $47.68 million
• MotorCity, up 0.5% to $31.17 million
• Hollywood Casino at Greektown, down 7.8% to $22.38 million
In September 2024, the three Detroit casinos paid $8.2 million in gaming taxes to the State of Michigan. They paid $8.1 million for the same month last year. The casinos also reported submitting $12.5 million in wagering taxes and development agreement payments to the City of Detroit in September.
Monthly Retail Sports Betting Revenue and Taxes
The three Detroit casinos reported $22.02 million in total retail sports betting handle, and total gross receipts were $771,751 for the month of September. Retail sports betting qualified adjusted gross receipts (QAGR) were down by 52.0% in September when compared to September 2023, and down by 55.4% when compared to August 2024.
September QAGR by casino was:
• MGM: $601,794
• MotorCity: $11,817
• Hollywood Casino at Greektown: $141,908
During September, the casinos paid $28,559 in gaming taxes to the state and reported submitting $34,905 in wagering taxes to the City of Detroit based on their retail sports betting revenue.
Fantasy Contests
For August 2024, fantasy contest operators reported total adjusted revenues of $613,448 and paid taxes of $51,530.
Gambling in the USA
Zula Casino Kicks Off its Spectacular 1-Year “Zula-versary” with a Month of Events and Promotions
Zula Casino launched its online social casino in the US exactly a year ago delivering more. More games. More rewards. More free-to-play entertainment through a personalized experience. Zula Casino marked its one-year launch by crossing the 1000 casino-game threshold – a milestone that positions it among the top platforms nationwide.
The month-long birthday bash intends to go over the top to give back to its amazing player community that helped make this first year so incredible. With its advent calendar format, players can unlock a special surprise each day ranging from a “Win-a-Vacation” event, a carnival event, free spins and new exclusive games, and a prize pool of over 25 billion Gold Coins (GC) plus 150,000 Sweeps Coins (SC) to be given out throughout the month. Over this period, Zula Casino will run other special events, including surprise happy hours with special coupons, various social media contests, and special giveaways.
“We’re incredibly proud of the player experience we’ve built over the last 12 months. The platform has garnered a substantial and loyal pool of players, and it’s not just because we offer one of the largest game selections from leading global providers, but also the exclusive experiences we’re providing, and the platform’s continued evolution with enhanced promotions, personalization, and seamless user experience,” said Tamar Laypan, Program Manager of Zula Casino.
Zula Casino has added over 1000 games across all categories over the past 12 months, including slots, jackpots, fish, table, plinko, megaways, crash, hold and win, tumble games, and more. These additions include top games like Big Bass Vegas and Fire Stampede, as well as branded exclusives like Gold Gold Gold 5000, supplied by Booming Games, and Sweet Bonanza 1000 by Pragmatic Play. With recent additions, Zula Casino now boasts 25 game providers, including Relax Gaming, Habanero, Evoplay, Pragmatic Play, RubyPlay, Gamzix, Let Us Entertain You Inc., to name a few.
Zula Casino flourished in a tough and highly competitive market, launching its proprietary-integrated platform in September of last year. With an average TrustPilot score of 4.6 and almost 9K reviews, the online social casino is among the highest-rated free-to-play sites in the market.
Zula Casino was also previously shortlisted for the prestigious Global SBC Awards in the category of “Rising Star in Casino”.
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