Bally’s Corp. is all about that public ownership life, offering a stake in its Chicago casino. They’re trying to raise a cool $195.1 million for a project that isn’t even finished yet. This ain’t their first rodeo, though. They tried this IPO thing before for the same $2 billion Chicago casino project, but the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission shut them down. Apparently, people weren’t happy about the whole discrimination thing, with the IPO giving special treatment to folks in four states who qualified as minorities. But hey, round two is here, and this time they’re showing some love to the Illinois and Chicago crew. According to some SEC filing, they’re all about giving the local peeps a chance to get in on the action.
The big boss at Bally’s, Chairman Soo Kim, is feeling pretty good about the whole situation. He’s claiming they’ve got a lot of interest from women and minority groups for ownership. To spread the love even further, they’re extending the investment opportunity to more Chicagoans. They really want to show their commitment to the Windy City and its community development. Good on them, I guess.
Oh, and fun fact: Bally’s used to run the Tropicana Las Vegas, but that got blown up last year to make space for an MLB stadium. Now they’re planning to build a whole new resort on that site. But hey, they haven’t exactly secured the funds for that project or the Chicago one. Details, details.
In other news, Pennsylvania has joined the cool kids’ club by hopping on board the Multi-State Internet Gaming Agreement. They’re the sixth state to do so, tagging along with Nevada, New Jersey, Michigan, Delaware, and West Virginia. Online poker players in Pennsylvania are now getting in on the interstate pool play action, all thanks to the governor signing off on the agreement. It’s all about that enhanced competition, bigger prize pools, industry growth, and support for the little guys. Plus, it helps keep things regulated and legit. Can’t go wrong with that, right?
BetMGM Poker, PA Borgata Online Poker, and WSOP Online are some of the first online operators letting Pennsylvania players join the multi-state pool party. Caesars Entertainment’s WSOP Online is going all out, pooling liquidity from four states—Nevada, New Jersey, Michigan, and now Pennsylvania. The 2025 WSOP Online Bracelet tournament is set to kick off on May 31, so get those poker faces ready, people.
Now, the NCAA is getting in on the action too. They’re partnering up with Genius Sports to provide official data from championship events to sportsbooks. But there’s a catch—sportsbooks can’t offer those high-risk proposition bets. So, no betting on underperformance, negative outcomes, injuries, officials’ decisions, or fan-voted awards. Seems fair enough. Genius is now the go-to for NCAA stats until 2032, and it’s all about keeping things clean and legit in the sports betting world.
Over in Oklahoma, they’re trying to get their sports betting game on. Two bills have made their way to the state Senate floor, but things are a bit complicated. There’s one bill giving Indian tribes the exclusive rights to offer sports betting, and another one that would need a voter referendum. But the governor isn’t exactly thrilled about it, so it’s gonna be a bumpy ride for those bills.
Last but not least, Macao is rolling in that gaming tax dough. They’ve already raked in $2.8 billion in the first quarter of 2025, which is a hefty sum. It’s tracking slightly ahead of last year, but they’ve got big expectations for the fiscal year. Let’s see if they can keep up the momentum.
And there you have it, folks. The world of gaming and betting is always buzzing with new developments and drama. Who knows what’s coming next? It’s a wild ride, that’s for sure.
