Casino News Roundup: Air France Boosts Vegas Tourism & NYC Casino Opens
Welcome to the Casino Daily News Roundup - your briefing on the latest news from the global casino industry. We bring you the biggest stories from across the sector, covering everything from major business deals and revenue figures to new openings and regulatory developments.
Air France Lands In Las Vegas As City Bids To Rebuild International Tourism
Las Vegas has a new reason for optimism.
Air France has launched nonstop seasonal service between Paris-Charles de Gaulle and Harry Reid International Airport - the first time the French flag carrier has ever operated regularly scheduled direct flights to the city.
The route runs three times a week on Mondays, Wednesdays and Saturdays, using an Airbus A350-900 configured with business class, premium economy and economy cabins.
Flight AF56 departs Paris in the early afternoon and arrives on the Strip by mid-afternoon local time, making it one of the more convenient transatlantic connections available to European visitors.
The timing could not be better for a city that badly needs it.
Las Vegas recorded around 38.5 million visitors in 2025 - a 7.5% decline from 2024 and the lowest figure since 2021.
Canadian and Mexican tourism have both fallen sharply, and Strip gaming revenue dropped 11% year-on-year in January 2026.
The Air France route opens a new European feeder market at exactly the moment the city is looking for fresh sources of international demand.
Las Vegas welcomed nearly 1.2 million European visitors in 2024, including 86,000 from France - a base the new direct connection is now poised to expand significantly.
Airport officials project the seasonal service will add around 26,892 seats this summer, generating an estimated $34million in direct economic impact and more than $57.5m in total annual impact.
The launch is part of a broader push to strengthen Las Vegas's international profile.
KLM already provides year-round service from Amsterdam, and the Air France route now adds Paris - one of the world's most connected aviation hubs - to the city's direct European network.
For casino operators hoping to attract higher-spending international visitors, a direct Paris connection is a meaningful addition.
European tourists tend to stay longer and spend more per visit than domestic drive-in traffic, and the A350 route positions Las Vegas to capture a greater share of the premium transatlantic leisure market heading into peak summer.
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New York City Gets Its First Full Casino As Resorts World Opens Table Games
Tuesday marks a genuine milestone for American gambling.
Resorts World New York City officially opens the first full-scale commercial casino in New York City's 400-year history, with live table games going on the floor at the Aqueduct Racetrack site in Queens.
The reimagined third floor launches with over 240 table games - blackjack, craps, baccarat, and roulette - alongside more than 2,500 slot machines with multi-million-dollar jackpots.
Queens-born rapper Nas is joining Genting Chairman KT Lim for a ribbon-cutting ceremony and ceremonial first roll of the dice.
Over 2,200 jobs have been created ahead of day one - double the pre-expansion workforce - including 950 newly trained table game dealers.
Resorts World has been operating slot machines and electronic games at the Aqueduct site since 2011, generating close to $5billion for New York's public education system in that time.
The casino has now pledged a further $2.5bn to the Metropolitan Transportation Authority over the next four years - more than the MTA had budgeted from all three downstate casino licence fees combined.
Annual casino tax payments are projected to reach $1.7bn by 2031, which would make Resorts World New York City the single largest casino tax generator in the country.
The venue's two rivals - Bally's Bronx and the Hard Rock/Steve Cohen Metropolitan Park in Flushing - are not expected to open until around 2030, giving Resorts World a clear run at New York City's table game market for at least four years.
Those looking to best online slots will find that the New York State gaming authority has been equally focused on digital expansion, with iGaming legislation also advancing in Albany.
Caesars Reports Q1 Earnings Today As Takeover Silence Deepens
All eyes in the US casino industry are on Caesars Entertainment.
The company reports its Q1 2026 financial results after market close today - the most closely watched earnings announcement in the sector right now, given that the 45-day exclusivity window with Tilman Fertitta's Fertitta Entertainment expired weeks ago with no deal announced.
Fertitta's reported bid stands at $32 per share, implying an equity value of $6.5bn and an enterprise value of $31.5bn including Caesars' substantial debt. Carl Icahn's $33-per-share fallback offer remains available, subject to due diligence.
Whether CEO Tom Reeg addresses the takeover situation directly on the earnings call - scheduled for 5pm Eastern Time - remains to be seen, but investors will be listening closely for any signal on where the process stands.
Analysts will also be watching the Las Vegas and Caesars Digital segments for signs of consumer health heading into summer, against a backdrop of softening Strip visitation and rising gas prices.
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Evoke Full-Year Results Due Today As Bally's Takeover Deadline Approaches
Also reporting today is Evoke - owner of William Hill and 888 - which publishes its long-delayed full-year 2025 financial results alongside an expected update on Bally's Intralot's 50p-per-share takeover proposal.
The results have been held back since the standard reporting window, with analysts widely interpreting the delay as a sign that a transaction announcement was close.
The May 18 formal offer deadline - set under UK Takeover Panel rules - is now just three weeks away.
Bally's Intralot must by that date either confirm a firm intention to make an offer or walk away entirely.
The numbers will be the first full set of Evoke financials to reflect the scale of its challenges.
The company owes lenders around £1.8bn - roughly eight times its current market value of approximately £225m - and warned earlier this year that the UK's doubling of Remote Gaming Duty to 40% will cost it an estimated £135m annually.
It has already confirmed the closure of 200 William Hill shops from May.
Whether the results show the business stabilising - or deteriorating further - will likely have a direct bearing on how aggressively Bally's Intralot pushes to close a deal, and at what price.
