{"id":11316,"date":"2018-08-03T17:30:42","date_gmt":"2018-08-03T17:30:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.pokerscout.com\/?p=11316"},"modified":"2018-08-04T16:38:00","modified_gmt":"2018-08-04T16:38:00","slug":"wsop-denies-rumor-of-move-away-from-rio-in-2020","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.pokerscout.com\/wsop-denies-rumor-of-move-away-from-rio-in-2020\/","title":{"rendered":"WSOP Denies Rumor Of Move Away From Rio In 2020"},"content":{"rendered":"

Late Thursday night, Vital Vegas<\/strong> tweeted a rumor<\/a> that the World Series of Poker<\/strong> will move from its home at the Rio to the new Caesars Forum\u00a0Convention Center<\/strong> when it opens on the Strip in 2020. The reason? According to Vital Vegas, a sale of the Rio is progressing.<\/p>\n

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You know those persistent rumors of Rio sale? Next level chatter happening, Caesars seriously shopping this fixer-upper.<\/p>\n

\u2014 Vital Vegas (@VitalVegas) August 3, 2018<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

However, a Caesars<\/strong> spokesperson flatly denied the rumor<\/strong>\u00a0about the WSOP this morning.<\/p>\n

In an email to USPoker<\/em>, the spokesperson wrote:<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have had no discussions to move the WSOP. We consider the Rio its home for the foreseeable future.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

For its part, Vital Vegas stuck to its guns in subsequent tweets<\/a>. The website has accurately predicted events in the past, but the concrete denial from Caesars casts this particular prediction in doubt.<\/p>\n

However, it got us thinking about the possibility of such a move.<\/p>\n

The pros of a WSOP move away from Rio<\/span><\/h2>\n

Since 2005<\/a>, the Rio All-Suites Casino and Hotel<\/strong> has hosted the series and seen poker through its most explosive growth period. However, a move to the Strip would make sense for several reasons.<\/p>\n

Prestige<\/span><\/h3>\n

The Rio has always been something of an odd choice to host the marquee event for poker players. The off-Strip casino became the home of the WSOP<\/strong>\u00a0after Caesars (well, Harrah\u2019s<\/strong>) purchased Binion\u2019s Horseshoe<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

However, the Rio has never been a crown jewel in the Caesars family of casinos. It seems more appropriate for such an important event to be center stage.<\/p>\n

The new Caesars Forum would be exactly that location. A sparkling $375-million building with 300,000 square feet of meeting space would be a perfect place to compete at the highest level of poker.<\/p>\n

Access<\/span><\/h3>\n

The Caesars Forum is under construction behind Harrah\u2019s, the Linq<\/strong>, and the Flamingo<\/strong>. The facility will be accessible via both car and walkways from those three properties.<\/p>\n

Having the World Series of Poker in the middle of the Strip is guaranteed to increase accessibility for the millions of people who visit Las Vegas each year. The prospect of taking a taxi or one of the free shuttles from the Strip to the somewhat remote Rio drives away more casual players and fans.<\/p>\n

Profit potential<\/span><\/h3>\n

Those casual players and fans could potentially spark a new phase of development for the WSOP. A WSOP accessible to foot traffic would increase player numbers and player pools simply by virtue of people dropping by to see the show.<\/p>\n

The presence of the WSOP next to those three casinos would also increase their value immensely. Those three casinos have long been trouble spots for Caesars.<\/p>\n

However, the WSOP occurring next door would make those rooms incredibly valuable real estate. This effect would be particularly noticeable during the summer months.<\/p>\n

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