Skift Take
MGM Resorts is the first operator to confirm it has applied for a casino license in the UAE, but it is likely not the only one.
MGM Resorts has already submitted its proposal to the UAE government to operate a casino in the country, CEO Bill Hornbuckle said Thursday at the Skift Global Forum 2024. The Las Vegas giant is yet to have any running hotels there but is the only operator to openly state it has applied for the right to run a legal casino.
“Yes we have [applied]. We’ve done it in Abu Dhabi,” said Hornbuckle. “The way it will work is the federal government in Abu Dhabi will approve it, we’ve applied for it and hopefully we’ll win the license there. Each ruler has their city, their state. Each can say yes or no.”
“I hope and believe this year we’ll understand more about Abu Dhabi and the federal mandate and go from there.”
The UAE’s federal entity for gaming – the General Commercial Gaming Regulatory Authority (GCGRA) – announced it was accepting proposals for gaming licenses in July.
The process involves a preliminary intake form and screening, after which successful applicants will be allowed to apply for a casino license.
The GCGRA’s board of directors is chaired by Hornbuckle’s former boss, Jim Murren, who was the chairman and CEO of MGM Resorts from 2008 to 2020. Murren is not on the selection committee for handing out gaming licenses.
Pinning Hopes on an Abu Dhabi Casino
While it has applied for a casino license there, MGM does not have any ongoing projects in Abu Dhabi – the capital of the UAE. Back in 2006, MGM announced plans for a non-gaming project in Abu Dhabi, which never got off the ground. The group has an ongoing non-gaming development off-shore in Dubai.
Hornbuckle said he would not go into Abu Dhabi again without a casino license, since “that’s the business MGM is in.”
The other major player in the UAE’s fledging gambling industry is Wynn Resorts, which is much further along than MGM in terms of shovels in the ground in the UAE. Wynn has a $3.9 billion resort opening in Ras Al Khaimah, another of the emirates alongside Dubai and Abu Dhabi.
Wynn expects to have a casino, and this month hired a VP of casino operations, but is yet to openly state it has begun the process for obtaining a license.
In July, asked if it had applied for a gaming license, a Wynn spokesperson told Skift, âWe are reviewing the public information on the [General Commercial Gaming Regulatory Authority] website and will of course adhere to the instructions and directives it contains.â
Acknowledging Wynn, Hornbuckle said: “Look, there’s a cultural barrier to get through but that has now happened. There’s going to be something happening in Abu Dhabi, it’ll take some time to build. Wynn is already out of the ground.”
