Vol. 9 • No. 19 • May 16, 2011 - Print This Issue
RSS 2.0 Feed
Vol. 9 • No. 19 • May 16, 2011, Featured Articles, PODCASTS
GLOBAL GAMING BUSINESS PODCAST: Ralph Topping, Chief Executive, William Hill
This week, the Global Gaming Business Podcast features an interview with Ralph Topping, the chief executive of British bookmaker William Hill, and the three heads of his recently acquired U.S. divisions, all based in Nevada.
Download this Podcast Episode or Click Below to Play it.
The William Hill Company of Great Britain just completed a buying spree in Nevada that catapulted the company from zero to 60 in one month for U.S. operations. Chief Executive Ralph Topping announced in March that his 76-year-old company was acquiring American Wagering, led by gaming veteran Vic Salerno, its Leroy’s sports books and mobile technology, and the Northern Nevada outlets of Cal Neva Sports Books, led by Jeff Siri. One month later, Topping was back with the purchase of Joe Asher’s Brandywine Gaming and its Lucky’s sports books in Nevada, as well as participation in the Delaware sports books. Topping and the three leaders of the purchased companies met with Global Gaming Business Publisher Roger Gros at the Brandywine headquarters in Las Vegas in May to discuss the expanded company and what it means for legalized sports betting in the U.S. and beyond.
More Featured Articles
WEEKLY FEATURE: AGA Pushes Online Poker
A new “white paper” outlining the position of the American Gaming Association towards online gaming was released last week in Washington D.C. complete with a “fly in” by gaming executives to lobby members of Congress. AGA President and CEO Frank J. Fahrenkopf (l.) says U.S. gaming companies should be allowed to serve people who want to play poker online.
Racinos Beat Casinos In Texas House
A Texas House committee recently approved a bill to allow slots at racetracks and Native American reservations. At the same time, no action has been taken on a bill allowing up to seven destination resort casinos throughout the state. Rep. Mike “Tuffy” Hamilton (l.) said he could not get consensus on the casino bills.
Massachusetts Lures Big Players
Now that some sort of expanded gaming in Massachusetts looks more likely, some of the biggest players in gaming are showing interesting and unveiling ambitious casino resort projects. Mohegan Sun’s Mitchell Etess (l.) is looking to build a resort in Palmer.
MGM China Ups Revenue Target
The still-to-be-completed MGM China IPO has now tripled since it was announced last year. The company is now looking to raise $1.5 billion, much of which will got to partner Pansy Ho, who sells half of her stake, while MGM gets 51 percent.
Austrian-Italian JV’s Second VLT Venue
The Italian VLT market continues to grow as planned venues come on line. The latest addition is from Azzurro Gaming, the joint venture between operator Casinos Austria International and license-holder Cogetech of Italy. At left, Josef Leutgeb (CFO Casinos Austria International) and Fabio Schiavolin (CEO Cogetech and president of Azzurro Gaming) in Vincendo Meran.
Crown Adds to VIP Investment
Crown continues to tweak its properties in the Australian market—if spending another $300 million on top of upgrades costing $1.5 billion-plus can be considered “tweaking.” In any case, Crown appears to be going full tilt to capture the growing Asian VIP market, with improvements at Crown Melbourne (l.) and other sites.