Hard Rock Atlantic City recently welcomed its new signage for the hotel and casino. The sign represents more than a new addition to the NJ gambling market; it represents the rebounding of a city.
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It looks like MA gamblers will be able to enjoy after-hours drinking at the casino when MGM Springfield opens at the end of August.
Last call everywhere else in Springfield is at 2 a.m. However, Springfield City Council approved a proposal on Monday night allowing MGM Springfield to extend alcohol serving hours at the casino until 4 a.m.
State lawmakers still need to approve the proposal. But if they do, gamblers on the casino floor will be able to continue drinking for two more hours after the traditional last call.
The extended alcohol serving hours will only be available to gamblers on the casino floor. In fact, all MGM Springfield restaurants and bars will still be forced to observe a 2 a.m. last call for alcohol.
Drinks served on the casino floor between 2 a.m. and 4 a.m. will also be served in different cups. Alcohol sales will be prohibited from 4 a.m. to 8 a.m.
MGM announced in April that its $950 million MGM Springfield casino resort will open its doors on Friday, August 24.
Promising to be New England’s first integrated luxury resort and entertainment destination, MGM Springfield will feature a boutique-style five-story hotel with 250 guestrooms, inspired by the historic significance of the area.
The property will offer an array of food and beverage options, including:
Entertainment on the property will center around the 8,000-seat MassMutual Center, MGM Springfield’s official entertainment venue. It will house large-scale conventions, events, and live entertainment. Stevie Wonder is scheduled to play MassMutual Center on Saturday, Sept. 1.
Further entertainment options on the property include MGM Springfield’s Topgolf Swing Suite, an eight-screen movie theater complex, and a 10-lane bowling center.
MGM Springfield will also feature a spa and an 8,000-square-foot pool housed within a terraced rooftop garden.
The property will also include close to 55,000 square feet of retail space. The resort’s retail space will include an open-air plaza inspired by the classic New England town common. This space will feature an open-air marketplace hosting live events, local artisans, farmers markets and a seasonal outdoor ice rink.
Finally, the property will include a 125,000-square-foot casino. The gaming floor will feature more than 2,550 slot machines and 120 gaming tables. Plus, a poker room and high-limit VIP gaming area.
When it does open, MGM Springfield will be Massachusets’ second commercial casino. Penn National Gaming opened the Plainridge Park Casino in Plainville in 2015.
The Expanded Gaming Act, passed by state lawmakers in 2011, also authorized the opening of a third commercial casino. The $2.4 billion Encore Boston Harbor (formerly Wynn Boston Harbor) is scheduled to open in Everett in 2019.
The Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe is also building a $1 billion Tribal casino in Taunton. The First Light Resort & Casino plans to open its doors this summer.
Photo by Alexandru Nika / Shutterstock.com
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By end of day Thursday, New Jersey lawmakers could be sending a final NJ sports betting bill to the governor for his signature, clearing the way for casinos and racetracks to open sportsbooks almost immediately.
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Hard Rock Atlantic City has yet to reveal its plans for a sportsbook. While the common opinion is that there will be a Hard Rock sportsbook, who will run it and when it will launch remains a mystery.
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Amid the dizzying array of news surrounding the Trump Administration these days is a surprising report out of South Korea that says its neighbor to the north wants Trump’s help …
Proposed regulatory legislation in the Garden State could keep Golden Nugget Atlantic City out of New Jersey’s sports betting market. Plus, if other states follow suit, casinos with ties to pro sports franchises all over the US could suddenly be on the outside looking in as well.
On May 14, the US Supreme Court declared the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act of 1992 (PASPA) unconstitutional. This opened the door for all 50 states to join Nevada in legalizing single-game wagering.
Delaware was able to open up its local sport betting market June 5. The quick turnaround is the result of already having the legal framework for sports betting set up.
New Jersey is in the midst of putting together regulatory sports betting legislation to govern the industry there. However, language in the latest bill being considered by NJ lawmakers asks casino and racetrack operators with an ownership interest in a sports franchise to choose between the team and opening up a sportsbook.
In fact, a provision in sports betting bills in both the NJ Senate and Assembly will restrict sports team owners from offering wagers on sports. A provision that would force Golden Nugget Atlantic City owner Tilman Fertitta to choose between opening a sportsbook and the NBA’s Houston Rockets. A team the Houston billionaire bought for $2.2 billion in 2017.
Caesars properties in Atlantic City could also be affected by the provision. Caesars is owned by Apollo Capital Management, a private equity firm co-founded by Philadelphia 76ers and New Jersey Devils owner Joshua Harris. However, Caesars size and the nature of its ownership arrangements might protect it.
The bill essentially prohibits casino operators who own a stake of 10 percent or more in a sports franchise from offering sports betting. Although there appears to be a few exceptions. Operators qualify for a waiver if:
Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa owner MGM Resorts would likely qualify for a waiver. It owns the WNBA’s Las Vegas Aces. However, that franchise is worth less than one percent of MGM. MGM reported $10.8 billion in net revenue in 2017.
Fertitta’s Landry’s Inc. posted approximately $3.4 billion in revenue in 2017.
Caesars Entertainment posted net revenues of $4.85 billion in 2017. The 76ers are worth approximately $800 million and the New Jersey Devils are valued at about half that.
The bill would give operators one year to divest their interest in the sports franchise. This provision might allow casinos with sports franchise ownership interests to open a sportsbook. Then they can spend the next 12 months trying to sell the team or lobby state lawmakers to change the law.
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Visit Golden NuggetThere is no restriction on franchise and sportsbook ownership in Nevada. There, Fertitta and Golden Nugget avoid questions of impropriety by not allowing wagering on Rockets games at its sportsbooks in Las Vegas and Laughlin.
Caesars Entertainment Chairman Gary Loveman is also a minority owner of the NBA’s Boston Celtics. The Celtics have been off the board at Caesars’ Nevada sportsbooks since he bought the stake in 2006.
The Las Vegas-based Maloof family previously held ownership interests in both the Palms Casino Resort and the NBA’s Sacramento Kings. The Palms’ sportsbook refused to take wagers on the Kings at that time.
However, as it stands in New Jersey, such compromises may not be enough.
Fertitta and Landry’s also own casinos in Mississippi and Louisiana. Caesars has additional casino properties in Arizona, California, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, Missouri, North Carolina, and Pennsylvania.
Golden Nugget and Caesars Entertainment must be hoping amendments can change the ownership restrictions in New Jersey. Although it will have to happen fast. New Jersey is hoping to pass the necessary regulatory legislation and launch legal sports betting this month.
In the meantime, both must also be hoping these type of ownership restrictions don’t become a legislative trend. Considering both companies casino interests in other states that could be considering legalizing sports betting as well.
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Major League Baseball is working the angles with New York lawmakers. In recent months, the league has shuffled several of its local cast members through Albany to advocate for regulated NY sports betting.
Joe Girardi and Joe Torre were the most recent to appear. The last two managers of the New York Yankees each paid a visit to the capital over the past two weeks, urging lawmakers to adopt updated provisions proposed by their league and others.
“The game has meant so much to me and my family,” Girardi said, “and I’m here encouraging New York legislators to pass a law that basically protects the integrity of the game.” He and Torre have traded in their pinstripes for a coat and tie, both now working for MLB directly.
The pitch comes as the NY legislature works to broaden the existing sports betting language before its June 20 deadline. Under that 2013 law, activated by the recent US Supreme Court ruling, the four upstate NY casinos could soon be taking bets.
MLB contends that any revised terms should include things like integrity fees and league control over the flow of sports data. The multi-pronged approach has included on-the-record testimony from lawyers, closed-door sessions with paid lobbyists, and now visits from local NY athletes.
Lawmakers have also heard from former Knicks guard John Starks and Mets pitcher Al Leiter.
Girardi was the Yankees catcher for four seasons, three of which ended with a World Series title. He assumed the role of manager after retiring, delivering another Yanks championship in 2009 — its 27th in history. You’ll find him providing analysis for the MLB Network these days.
As you’d expect from someone talking sports betting on MLB’s behalf, Girardi featured the word “integrity” prominently.
“I think the law is coming so I think important for New York to be out on the forefront and get something passed, again, that protects the integrity of the game — this session. I don’t think we can wait.”
His local history and his feel-good childhood baseball story make Girardi a good candidate to pinch hit for MLB lobbyists. Here’s what he said about his motivations for speaking on the topic:
It’s because I care so much about this game. It’s been a part of my life since I was five or six years old. We’d to go Cubs games with my father. We would drive up three hours, ride with him as a little boy in his car and listen to games on the radio. And then eventually, I got a chance to live my dream and to be a player for many years and also a manager. So I worry about the integrity of the game.
This is exactly the type of relatable story MLB hopes will sway the minds of lawmakers and the general public.
The leagues have not, so far, received a warm reception in any statehouse, but they do seem to be gaining traction in NY. Bills on file in each chamber follow (or at least borrow from) their blueprint.
The Democrat & Chronicle has the full Girardi interview.
For all of his success in NY, Girardi probably won’t have his face bronzed and cemented in Monument Park. The team fired him last season, and most Yankees fans aren’t big Girardi fans.
His predecessor, though, is already immortalized in center field. Torre is a Hall of Famer with an impeccable career as both a player and a skipper, including four World Series titles with the Yankees. His plaque now lives alongside all-time legends like Babe Ruth and Reggie Jackson.
“I’ve been in baseball almost 60 years,” Torre began. “It’s been my life. It’s very important to me and my family. The only thing I ask is that we be engaged.”
Today, Torre is one of MLB’s central figures and a key executive. He’s served as chief baseball officer since 2012, which essentially puts him in charge of all operations. When he speaks, folks tend to listen.
Torre said he’s not lobbying for any particular side, and his statements aren’t substantive from a legislative standpoint. They’re really more about perception and feelings.
Here’s his vague pitch:
I just want you to take care of our game. When you open it up to all of the people who would be involved in sports betting, there’s some potholes out there. And I want to do my part in just letting you know how I feel about the passion I have for this sport and, of course, all the fans who’ve enjoyed it for all these years.
As the overseer of playing and umpiring, Torre’s role is arguably the one most directly tied to the integrity of the game. “The fans trust us in baseball, and I’d hate to jeopardize that,” he said. “That’s too important.”
The “trust” point is an interesting one.
Fans don’t exactly distrust baseball, but it’d be hard to make the case that there’s complete trust, either. Compared to the other professional sports leagues, MLB has a pretty shaky track record when it comes to integrity.
It’s been almost 100 years since the Black Sox scandal, but the scar is very much present. In 1919, a betting syndicate tainted some of the Chicago White Sox, convincing them to throw the World Series in exchange for gambling payments. If you’ve seen Field of Dreams, you’ll recognize the name Shoeless Joe Jackson. He and seven teammates are banned for life for fixing games.
Speaking of folks who are banned from baseball…
During the Girardi interview, a reporter asked where he stood on Pete Rose, the disgraced superstar expelled for betting on games he played and managed. Three decades later, Rose’s pleas for reinstatement remain a point of controversy within the community.
“That’s something for the Hall of Fame to decide,” Girardi said. “Pete Rose was a great player, but the laws did not protect him from doing what he did. And that’s just an ex—“
“Thank you,” he was cut off by a man in a suit behind him, signaling the end of the interview.
Pete Rose and the Black Sox are not favorite topics of conversation for MLB.
Photo by dean bertoncelj / Shutterstock.com
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Kid-friendly amenities and one-of-a-kind guest experiences indicate that Ocean Resort Casino promises to be a sterling example of merging family-friendly with luxury in the growing Atlantic City gambling market.
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Delaware became the first state outside of Nevada to launch legal single-game sports wagering on Tuesday, with Delaware Gov. John Carney making the first bet on the Philadelphia Phillies to beat the Chicago Cubs.
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When the Supreme Court overturned the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act of 1992 (PASPA) mid-May, most people assumed that New Jersey would be the second state to accept legalized single-game sports wagers. Nevada, of course, was the first.
Well, you know what they say about assuming.
On Tuesday, the board at Dover Downs in Delaware lit up like “a Christmas tree,” according to Legal Sports Report’s Eric Ramsey.
Gov. John Carney stepped up to the counter to place the first single-game sports bet in the aptly-nicknamed First State.
Governor @JohnCarneyDE just placed the first legal sports bet in Delaware! He bet $10 on the Phillies moneyline at @DoverDowns. “Go Fightin’ Phils!” pic.twitter.com/w1YWuebRaK
— Eric Ramsey (@Eric_Ramsey) June 5, 2018
In case you are wondering, the first ticket sold became the first winning ticket. The Philadelphia Phillies bested the Chicago Cubs by a score of 6-1.
Delaware gets the spotlight, for a few days at least. Meanwhile, New Jersey is still trying to get its regulations passed.
Before New Jersey took the NCAA to court to earn the right to offer sports betting in the state, Delaware tried to challenge PASPA in court.
The Delaware lottery has been accepting parlay wagers since 2009 and was exempt from PASPA. It has been looking for a way to offer a full range of sports betting options ever since.
Delaware lost its fight and by now you know that New Jersey won its. However, it wasn’t looking that good for New Jersey either. At least until the Supreme Court agreed to hear the case.
The Garden State lost every battle along the way, until the last one. And that last one was the one that won the war, opening the door to legalized sports betting across the nation.
In a press conference at Dover Downs, Secretary of Finance Rick Geisenberger said:
The Carney administration and the casinos have been preparing for the possibility that the Supreme Court would invalidate PASPA… for the past six months.
We have been assembling training materials, updating and testing our software — we even developed some logo options for Sports Pick, and that list goes on and on. So when the court did take action a few weeks ago, we moved very quickly to put our plan into place…
Three weeks after Supreme Court’s decision, Delaware is finally able to accept single-game sports bets. The availability to place parlay wagers will continue across the state at Delaware Lottery retailers.
To participate in full-scale sports betting, however, a visit to one of Delaware’s three casinos is necessary:
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Visit Golden NuggetThere appear to be a plethora of headlines about potential sports betting legislation and special summer sessions to discuss the topic.
Don’t expect a stampede of states to launch sports betting quickly, though. Introducing sports betting can be complicated. It may require the renegotiation of tribal casino compacts, determining tax rates that often seem high and establishing an oversight process.
Some states, like Delaware and New Jersey, are not starting from scratch. While others will most likely look to Nevada and New Jersey to help them build a foundation.
Besides New Jersey, other states that are moving in the right direction are:
Oregon and Rhode Island seem to be following in Delaware’s footsteps by readying their state’s lottery to offer sports betting.
In the press conference, Carey explained how Delaware earned its nickname by becoming the first state to join the Union.
“We were the whole country for about a week,” he said, “and then the rest of the states joined us.”
Of course, this leads right into Carney celebrating Delaware’s status as being the first once again.
“We’re delighted to be first again today in allowing official betting on sports activities across our country.
While Delaware is not the first to offer sports betting, they are the first since the Supreme Court overturned PASPA. And for now, that is a big deal.
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