Bally’s Corporation has received regulatory approval for the takeover of operations at the Tropicana Las Vegas.
Following the approval, the company has stated that it is currently evaluating the redevelopment of the property to make it more competitive with hotels and casinos on the Las Vegas Strip.
The approval means that the company can now close the deal to acquire the Tropicana from Gaming and Leisure Properties for $308 million. At present, Penn Entertainment runs the operations of the casino.
The deal will see Bally’s lease the land that the Tropicana is located on from GLPI for an initial term of 50 years with annual rent set at $10.5 million. This may increase over time.
Bally’s President George Papanier said that he sees the Tropicana as a flagship property in Vegas. The company will release a marketing strategy for the property within 90-180 days. However, he also noted:
“But in this case, we think we should also evaluate the potential for a complete redevelopment, because of its competitive position in the market right now.”
Bally’s is the third largest casino company in the USA operating 17 casinos across 11 states. The company also has access to sports betting in 19 states.
“Bally’s looks forward to bringing its first-in-class interactive technology to Nevada and to leveraging our growing North American interactive segment through our omnichannel approach to maximize the retail database and grow our brand awareness through our relationship with Sinclair.”
Papanier also noted that the company intends to run the Tropicana as it now stands for a period of about 18 to 24 months. The company will then decide on any redevelopment plans.
Commission members were also concerned about how Bally’s propose to handle loyalty points as the Tropicana is currently operated by Penn National.
“Pending the Commission’s approval, we would coordinate with Penn National. They’ll put up signage and put out notifications through their existing database. Then we would launch our Bally’s players club.”
Image credit: Richard Martin / CC BY 2.0
Reporter & gambling industry analyst covering the land-based and online casino industry in the United States.
