Bold ambitions
Wynn Resorts announced their plans to secure a resort casino license in Japan so they can build the largest one of its kind in the world. The announcement was made at a recent press conference at the Wynn Resorts-owned Encore Boston Harbor Casino in Massachusetts.
The casino giant is increasing its lobbying efforts to try and obtain one of three licenses available in the country.
Wynn Resorts Development Japan President Chris Gordon believes Japan will soon be the third-largest gambling market in the global, just behind Nevada and Macau. He also sees Japan’s push to massively increase tourism levels in the next two decades as being a great sign. Gordon was also reported as saying:
It’s also a society that has had an interest in gaming. They certainly have gaming now, with pachinko, horses, and motorboats.”
Stiff competition
The regulatory framework for the casino resort sector in Japan is still to be finalized. It was only at the tail end of 2018 that a bill got approval to legalize these types of casinos.
Most of the other major casino companies across the world are also vying for one of these licenses. Caesars Entertainment only recently pulled out of the race.
Grand designs
Gordon has not revealed how much the casino company is willing to spend on developing such a massive casino resort. However, he has said there would be extensive spaces for exhibitions, conventions, and meetings.
Gordon estimates that if Wynn Resorts won the Osaka license, the size of the casino would range from two million to three million square feet. This would make it approximately eight times bigger than the Encore Boston Harbor Casino, which cost $2.6bn to develop.
the development cost would be around $8-9bn
In 2016, Wynn opened their Macau Cotai casino resort, which cost $4.2bn. Gordon claims the investment would be much larger than this for a resort casino in Japan. The reason he does not yet have a more exact figure is due to the extensive design variables they have yet to consider.
Previously, Wynn Resorts said to investors that, if they were successful in obtaining a casino license in Japan, the development cost would be around $8-9bn.
General preference for Osaka
Japan is trying to diversify its economy and become more attractive to tourists. One of the ways in which it is looking to increase visitor numbers is through the expansion of their gambling system.
However, the Japanese public is largely not in favor of gambling. Only two major cities, Yokohama and Osaka, have publicly put their hat in the ring for one of the three licenses.
Wynn Resorts are being less specific in aiming for a license that would allow them to operate in either of these two cities, or even in Tokyo.