The draw for the Champions League’s Round of 16 left the three remaining English clubs with mixed feelings – but it was a case of déjà vu for perennially jinxed Arsenal. The London club again drew one of European football’s giants in...
Author - Ben Blaschke
First Japan IR likely to open 2022
Japan’s first integrated resort will likely open in early 2022 following the safe passage of the country’s “IR Promotion Bill” through the upper house. Despite earlier objections by committee chairman Namba Shoji, who is a...
Australian Open tennis ditches gambling ads
Tennis fans may notice a few changes at next month’s Australian Open after Tennis Australia (TA) announced it would remove all courtside advertising hoardings for online sportsbook William Hill. William Hill branding featured prominently at...
Macau December revenue to continue upward trend
Macau’s gross gaming revenue is on track to enjoy a year-on-year increase of between 12 and 14 percent in December, continuing the city’s recent upwards trend. According to Bernstein’s Vitaly Umansky, GGR for the first 11 days of...
The Star to build luxury hotel tower
Sydney’s The Star is set to receive a spectacular new 200-metre tall hotel and residential tower after design firm FJMT’s impressive design was chosen by a special five member selection panel. “FJMT presented an elegant, international-standard...
Galaxy hosts inaugural “Mastering Cotai” event
Last Friday, leading Macau gaming industry executives and University of Macau Faculty of Business Administration staff and students met for the inaugural “Mastering Cotai” – a special presentation of the University of Macau Faculty of Business...
Australasian Gaming Expo to scale new heights
Registration has opened for next year’s Australasian Gaming Expo (AGE), with the world’s third largest casino gaming equipment exhibition set to grow further when it moves into its brand new home for the very first time. The recently...
UnionPay limit would have minimal impact on Macau
Any decision to cut in half the amount of cash China UnionPay card holders can withdraw from ATMs would have only a minor impact on Macau’s gaming industry, according to analysts. The South China Morning Post reported this week that the...
Japan casino bill no safe bet
Japan’s long mooted casino bill achieved a major milestone earlier this week when it passed the lower house – but there is still a long way to go before the gaming industry’s dream becomes reality. As reported by Japanese media...
WSOP Sydney main event underway
The inaugural World Series of Poker (WSOP) International Circuit Sydney main event is underway, with a huge field gathering in recently launched The Star Poker room. Currently representing the WSOP’s only presence in the Asia-Pacific region...
Australia’s BMW Finance ordered to repay AU$77 million
BMW Finance Australia has been ordered to repay customers a total of AU$77 million after the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) found the company breached responsible lending provisions. The refunds will apply to around 15,000...
MGM Cotai to benefit Macau recovery
Macau’s recovery is well underway and will only benefit further from the opening of MGM Cotai in 2017, according to international ratings agency Fitch. In the wake of a fourth consecutive month of rising gross gaming revenue for the city in...
Sony to focus more on mobile gaming
Sony is likely to push further into the world of mobile gaming in the future following the stunning success of its 2015 release Fate/Grand Order in Japan, the company has revealed. According to a report by Bloomberg, Fate/Grand Order was responsible...
First Hainan Airlines flight touches down in Las Vegas
Las Vegas celebrated a momentous moment in its rich history with the arrival of the inaugural flight direct from Beijing. Carrying around 200 passengers, including travellers, media and Chinese tourism officials, Hainan Airlines Flight 7969 touched...
Duterte orders junket figure Jack Lam arrested
Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has ordered the arrest of renowned Macau casino and junket operator Jack Lam. According to a statement by Philippine National Police Chief Director General Ronald dela Rosa, Lam – #44 in our sister magazine...
China to build full-scale Titanic replica
China is taking its love of unique tourist attractions to new heights with the construction of the world’s first full size replica of the Titanic. Weighing 52,310 tonnes and to be moored in a reservoir in Sichuan province, the replica will not...
APT Finale gains Macau regulatory approval
The Asian Poker Tour will hold its 2016 Finale at Macau’s Casino Lisboa this week after finally gaining regulatory approval to proceed. The series will run from 7 to 15 December in Lisboa’s Crystal Palace with the HK$11,000 Main Event...
Positive outlook for December GGR
Having celebrated a fourth consecutive month of year-on-year growth, Macau can look forward to a gross gaming revenue increase of at least 12 percent in December, according to Union Gaming analyst Grant Govertsen. Figures released late last week by...
Macau GGR up 14.4% in November
Macau has enjoyed a fourth consecutive month of rising gross gaming revenue, with November up 14.4 percent year-on year to MOP$18.79 billion according to figures from the Gaming Inspection and Coordination Bureau. It follows rises of 1.1 percent in...
Caesars joins the paid parking parade
Caesars Entertainment has announced that it will follow the lead of MGM Resorts and introduce paid parking to some of its Las Vegas Strip properties. In a statement released this week, Caesars said it will begin phasing in its paid parking scheme at...
Déjà vu for Japan casino bill
All of this talk about enacting Japan’s long-speculated casino legislation in the coming weeks sounds strangely familiar. December marks three years since the ruling Liberal Democratic Party first submitted a casino bill, only to see it...
Macau impresses as emerging Hong Kong eSports star shines
Were it not for a rising star of Asia’s rapidly expanding eSports community, Macau could well have been celebrating a breakthrough win last weekend with five representatives taking part in a qualifying tournament in Hong Kong for...
Las Vegas revenues soar ahead of China connection
The Las Vegas Strip looks set to finish 2016 with a bang after posting an impressive 14 percent year-on-year growth in gross gaming revenues for October. The results were led by strong performance from table games, with table win up 18.7 percent...
Hong Kong investors behind PokerStars privatization
Two Hong Kong investment funds have reportedly agreed to boost their financial support for controversial entrepreneur David Baazov in his bid to privatize gaming company Amaya, owner of online poker site PokerStars. According to Bloomberg, Baazov...
US man takes short break from blackjack to rob bank
A 52-year-old man has been indicted in West Virginia after taking a break from his blackjack session at a local casino to rob a bank before returning and resuming his game. Kerry Johnson, from Charleston, was playing at the Mardi Gras Casino in...
Hong Kong’s Theodore Racing wins GP2 Series
A week after falling agonizingly short of winning its ninth Macau Grand Prix, Hong Kong’s Theodore Racing Team has claimed victory in the GP2 Series championship at the season finale in Abu Dhabi. The next step down from Formula 1 and run in...
China arrests 94 in gambling ring bust
Chinese authorities have arrested 94 people allegedly involved in an illegal gambling ring that lured 400 players to Laos and Myanmar to gamble. According to China’s state news agency Xinhua, police made the arrests in Jincheng city in Shanxi at...
2016 a “meaningful” year for Tak Chun
Tak Chun Group has described 2016 as a “meaningful” year in the company’s development following the official opening of its latest VIP Club at Melco-Crown’s Studio City. The Studio City Tak Chun VIP Club represents Tak...
Facebook makes another China play
Facebook’s ongoing quest to win the approval of the Chinese Central Government has reached new heights with reports that the company has developed software that can filter various news reports from appearing on people’s pages based upon...
Chinese authorities shut down Asia Poker League Shanghai
When the Asia Poker League (APL) was launched earlier this year with the promise of running a series of tournaments across mainland China, it seemed immediately obvious that the organizers were playing with fire. Just a few days ago, those concerns...