Wynn Resorts To Break Ground in UAE Next Week

Wynn Resorts are to break ground on the United Arab Emirates resort next week according to a note from JP Morgan Securities LLC. The resort is expected to cost around $2 billion and is a partnership of Wynn Resorts and local developers.

Late last year Wynn Resorts Chief Executive Craig Scott Billings said the development which is slated to open in 2027 will have a gaming area, at the time people believed that to be an eSports Arena, however Billings clarified that by saying it will have a casino.

In reporting on an earnings call last year Wynn Resorts Chief Executive Craig Scott Billings confirmed that the resort slated to be completed by 2027 will now have a casino, the very first in the UAE.

Back in January this year both the Ras Al Khaimah emirate and Wynn said the resort would be licensed for gaming, however no-one knew exactly what this meant and thoughts were it would contain an e-sports stadium, but now it has been revealed that it will now be a casino.

“The casino component, where at least for some period of time, we will be operating on our own, which makes it quite exciting, is shaping up to be somewhat larger than Wynn Las Vegas”, Billings said.

“When you think about a market like that for some period of time, will be the only operator, you certainly don’t want to under-build the casino, but you want to maintain that sense of energy,” he went on to say.

The UAE is made up of seven emirates of the UAE and Ras Al Khaimah is one of the smallest, but the news gambling is coming and the comments Billings made it looks like even thou the region is strictly opposed to gambling under Muslim law, the appeal to attract gamblers and tourism seems to over-ride that rule.

How the casino will operate and who will be allowed to gamble has not been announced yet but certainly Wynn will now be the first there with a casino.