Opponent: Paris casino could “kill the industry”
French lawmakers may be ready to approve a legal casino in the capital city of Paris. A study on the merits of commercial gaming in the City of Lights is now under way and is expected to be complete by the end of the month, reported Pokernews.com. The study comes about six months after French police raided and closed several private gaming rooms, known as “cercles,” including the renowned Aviation Club de France and the Cercle Cadet.
A source told Le Parisien that prefect Jean-Pierre Duport wants to legally define “the legal status of the cercle and the way some them conduct their operations.”
“The time of opacity is over,” the source said. “The challenge of Duport’s mission is to create a transparent and controlled offer of gambling games,” either with a casino or with legal, regulated gaming rooms.
Pokernews.com reports that a Paris casino would be the 200th in the country, and a “game-changer” for the industry in France. Among the opponents of the plan is Georges Tranchant, founder of the Groupe Tranchant, which manages 19 land-based casinos in France, Switzerland and the Dominican Republic. “The position of the operators is very simple,” Tranchant said. “If we open a Las Vegas-style casino in Paris, we kill the industry.”
If the French government rules against a Paris casino, a Las Vegas-style casino could be built in Roissy-en-France near Charles de Gaulle International Airport.
