Caesars Decides To Drop Plan To Set Up Integrated Resort In Japan

Caesars Entertainment Corp was one of the major casino operators that had expressed interest in acquiring one of the three casino licenses to set up a multi-billion dollar integrated resort in Japan’s newly licensed market. However, the company recently announced that it had dropped the idea and will focus their attention on other ventures including their recent merger with Eldorado Resorts. 

When Japan decided to legalize casino gambling, there was a lot of interest shown by top casino operators around the world. However, a number of operators such as Crown Resorts and now Caesars have pulled out due to various reasons.

While Caesars confirmed that it will no longer pursue a casino license in Japan, the she statement did not elaborate on the casino operator’s current plans.

However, the state did quote CEO Tony Rodio’s statement that the company’s decision was influenced by the decisions being made by the Japanese government and its business partners as one of the reasons for pulling out.

Caesars Entertainment pulling out from the Japanese market is a positive for other casino operators as there will be less competition. Las Vegas Sands Corp and MGM Resorts are two of the big guns that are willing to invest over $10 billion to develop an integrated resort. Las Vegas Sands Corp recently announced that it would be focusing its efforts to open a casino resort in Tokyo or Yokohama. The company initially had its sights set on Osaka but dropped that option recently.

Yokohama Must Find New Partner

The Japanese government has been pushing hard for large-scale integrated resorts. The model will see hotels, shops, and casinos all located in the same location. Japan expects billions of dollars to be poured into its economy via these three integrated casino licenses as well as a boost in tourism and employment opportunities.  

Considering that only three licenses will be issued during the first phase, the competition is fierce amongst Japanese cities as each one wants the rights to host a multi-billion dollar integrated resort as it would gave their respective city a tremendous makeover. 

Several communities had already announced their participation in the race to host a casino resort and these include Yokohama, Nagasaki, Osaka and Wakayama. All of them have been looking for casino operators to partner as per regulations to submit their proposal. Caesars Entertainment had earlier responded to Yokohama’s request by sending in a proposal for their proposed casino resort but with their withdrawal, other proposals will now be considered.