Dubai Tourism Chief States City Won’t Become Gaming Destination, Despite MGM and Caesars Projects

Dubai will soon become house to hotel properties branded by MGM Resorts and Caesars Entertainment, but area officials say cannot obtain the idea that is wrong casinos and gambling aren’t visiting the region.

Dubai is home to the world’s tallest building plus some of the many fascinating synthetic islands, but casinos won’t presumably be coming anytime soon.

Gambling is considered ‘haram’ under Islamic law: a forbidden activity that goes against sacred texts found in the Quran.

During an meeting with Gulf News this week, Dubai Corporation for Tourism and Commerce CEO Issam Kazim was asked if there was clearly an evergrowing appetite to welcome gambling enterprises to the city.

‘No, there is not a desire for casinos,’ Kazim declared. ‘ We need to bear in mind that there are cultural things that are a concern to us.’

Non-Gaming Horizons

MGM Resorts and Caesars Entertainment, respectively ranked number 2 and #5 with regards to gross gaming revenue of the world’s casino operators, are embarking on the center East for the very first time by way of Dubai.

In March 2017, MGM reached a running contract with Dubai-based Wasl Hospitality and Leisure to advise on the development of the destination resort, and when completed in 2021, run its operations.

The beachfront that is 26-acre will feature the MGM Hotel, MGM Residences, and Bellagio Hotel.

Early in the day this month, Caesars Entertainment announced a partnership with Meraas, also a Dubai development firm, to manage and run component of the $1.6 billion Bluewaters that is man-made Island. Caesars is responsible for hospitality and entertainment in the land that is artificial measures roughly 80 acres.

Caesars CEO Mark Frissora stated the venture into Dubai is element of its post-bankruptcy consider expanding to international markets and lending the brand to hoteliers. Bob Morse, the company’s president of hospitality, said its Bluewaters partners Meraas put any gambling talk ’to rest very quickly.’

Expanding Tourism

The largest and many city that is populated the United Arab Emirates (UAE), throughout the last decade Dubai leaders have actually made an endeavor to become less reliant on oil. Expanding the tourism sector is a center point, and billions of dollars have actually been spent, many of which are monies tied to your house of Al Falasi, the Dubai royal household.

Certainly one of the town’s main draws are the synthetic islands built in the Persian Gulf.

Dubai is now the sixth most-visited town in the world, according to the planet Economic Forum. Nearly 15 million people checked out in 2017, lots that’s behind only Hong Kong, Bangkok, London, Singapore, and the world’s richest gambling hub, Macau.

Dubai is thought to be a progressive city, and has now eased some restrictions about what’s otherwise considered haram vices. Adult non-Muslims are permitted to eat alcohol in licensed venues typically present city resorts.

But gambling — frequently included on so-called ‘sin industry’ listings, along with alcohol, tobacco, tools production, and products that are sex-related; is not likely to be coming to Dubai any time soon, if ever.

However, city officials in Dubai have a committed goal of inviting 20 million tourists per year by 2020, which would make it the third locale that is most-visited the globe.

Shocker, Not: Nevada Most Gambling-Addicted State, Study Reveals

Nevada is America’s most gambling-addicted state, according to a new study conducted by WalletHub.com, an online finance website that is personal. It’s possibly the least surprising study results since one that showed that more than 50 percent of teens are dependent on their mobile phones.

Nevada holds the record for the most addicted gamblers, a study that is new. And no one is surprised. (Image: File/Getty)

That will come as surprise that is little however the placement of some other states into the study results may be worthy of a few raised eyebrows.

The old-fashioned way, WalletHub says it studied 19 key metric indicators to determine where excessive gambling is most prevalent in its third year evaluating which US states are the most addicted to taking chances with their money.

The assessment considered two areas that are main ‘gambling friendliness’ (a quotient that combined many different video gaming factors for each state) and ‘gambling problem and treatment.’ The weighted groups included factors such as the number of commercial and tribal casinos per capita, and percentage of adults with gambling disorders and parallel available number of behavioral counselors.

Nevada topped record of all gambling-addicted states with a total rating of 62.43. It ranked very first in gambling friendliness, and 10th in gambling treatment and problem.

Nevada gets the most casinos and gaming devices per capita, and rate that is fifth-highest of addiction.

One might suspect New Jersey or Pennsylvania to come next, but that ‘honor’ goes to South Dakota, which scored 53.1. Rounding out of the top five most states that are gambling-addicted Montana (52.9), Mississippi (51.8), and Louisiana (44.7).

Four of the top five are repeat offenders. Louisiana may be the entry that is newest, up from no. 9 in 2017, while West Virginia (#5 in 2017), dropped back again to # 6 in 2010.

Detailing Down And Up

Pennsylvania — which generates the second-most gross gaming casino revenue behind only Nevada — placed #27 on final years WalletHub list. But with all the Keystone State in the process of further expanding its commercial industry with up to 10 satellite that is new, along with impending online gambling and day-to-day dream sports, and slot machines inside truck stops and airport video gaming lounges, Pennsylvania has surged a dozen spots, up to #15.

Illinois ended up being another mover-upper, going from #18 in 2017 to #9 on this 12 months’s list. Though Illinois ranks 25th in gaming devices per capita and 21st in lottery sales, no state has more gambling-related arrests per capita, according to WalletHub.

Atlantic City’s nj fell two spots to #8. The Garden State ranks 2nd in gambling treatment and problem, with nearly three percent of most adults recognized as have a gambling disorder.

Implications of Legal Sports Betting

A lot of the US will dsicover their ‘gambling friendliness’ score increase, should sports betting be legalized for several 50 states. The Supreme Court is expected to soon hand its opinion down on the current federal ban that prohibits the experience in every but four states.

WalletHub asked five behavioral and psychology experts whether sports betting should be allowed at the federal level. All five said it will, aided by the basic viewpoint that eliminating unregulated illegal offshore and underground sportsbooks is within the interest that is best of both consumers and the gaming industry.

‘ The reason that is main states want gambling is money. Why not make sports wagering legal? Gamblers will gamble anyway,’ Indiana University Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences Professor Emeritus Jim Sherman noted.

as 20 states would be anticipated to pass activities gambling laws in the coming years should SCOTUS repeal the federal ban.

Land in Sight for Louisiana Riverboat Casinos as State Senate Passes ‘River to Shore’ Bill

On Tuesday, the very time that the Horseshoe Southern Indiana ended up being provided permission by the Indiana Gaming Commission to move its operations onto dry land, hundreds of kilometers south the Louisiana Senate was approving a bill that would additionally propel its own riverboat gambling enterprises onto terra firma.

State Senator Ronnie Johns believes Louisiana riverboat casinos should be permitted to come onto dry land after 25 years in the beverage. He would like to modernize hawaii’s casino industry therefore it can compete using its neighbors. (Image: Sarah Camard/Gambit Weekly)

The Louisiana Senate voted 22-14 to pass through State Senator Ronnie Johns’ (R-Lake Charles) SB316, which may enable the state’s 15 riverboat casinos to really make the evolutionary jump, provided all gambling activities are conducted within 1,200 legs of their licensed berths.

Johns’ bill would also remove a quirky statute from Louisiana gamble law that calls for each facility to have a paddle wheel that is operational.

Horseshoe Gets Lucky

Indiana passed a similar bill in 2015, and not a moment too quickly for the Horseshoe which includes been shut down on at minimum five occasions due to the flooding of the https://gamblingprofessors.com/tr/ Ohio river where it has been permanently docked since its establishment in 1998. Probably the most current closure had been in February, at great expense to their state.

The Indiana regulator on Tuesday approved a $85 million facility that is land-based should that be ‘above-land-based facility,’ because the Caesars-owned casino will be slightly elevated to negate the possibility of flooding.

‘This task further shows our continued enthusiasm for and commitment towards the state,’ said Brad Siegel, senior vice president at the Horseshoe. ‘We appreciate the Commission’s decision today and appearance forward to continuing our positive working relationships at the State and local level.’

Evolution or expansion?

A lot of the debate in Louisiana, meanwhile, was whether Johns’ bill constituted gambling expansion, since it proposes reworking the cap on casino floor space. The current limitation of 30,000 square feet would be replaced by a limit on gambling positions or the amount of seats in front side of slots at 2,365.

Johns stated his bill would modernize the state’s creaking casino sector, allowing it to incorporate bigger slots with the latest cutting-edge technology, which can only help it to deflect competition from the casinos of Oklahoma and Mississippi.

State Senator Danny Martiny (R-Dist. 10) agreed, and berated senators that are fellow thought otherwise.

We have got an industry that is providing us with income, thank Jesus,’ Martiny stated. ‘Everybody that’s against it, sure doesn’t shy away from coming to Appropriations and asking for some of that money.