Live! Casino & Hotel Philadelphia is still 18 months from opening its doors. Yet already the Pennsylvania property owned by Stadium Casino, LLC already has quite the list of plans, including joining the PA sports betting marketplace.
The Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board (PGCB) held a hearing Monday to determine the viability of renewing the casino’s Category 2 Slot Machine Operator’s license.
During this time, representatives from Live! Casino & Hotel Philadelphia indicated that the property would construct a PA retail sportsbook on the property.
Sportsbook will connect to a sports bar
So far, according to Stadium Casino officials, the foundation of the new property has been laid. They still target a December 2020 completion date.
Part of the casino’s plans includes a sportsbook connected to a sports bar.
“It’s not just a sports betting parlor,” one representative said, “but it provides food offerings and entertainment, as well.”
Stadium Casino’s presentation noted how the hotel and casino, expected to reside within the sports stadium district, will become the “premier sports, entertainment, gaming hospitality destination in the US.”
Officials from the ownership group did not provide any more detail on the casino’s PA sports betting plans.
Live! Casino & Hotel piling up licenses
Despite more than a year separating Stadium Casino, LLC from the expected opening date of Philly’s newest casino, the ownership group has moved along in attaining the proper gaming licenses. Although it has yet to apply for Pennsylvania’s $10 million sports wagering license.
In March, the group applied for licensing to offer PA online gambling. Eventually, the group plans to offer online slot machines and table games, but will not offer online poker.
Last year the group also plunked down over $40 million for a PA mini-casino license. The company will open a casino in the Pittsburgh area along with its flagship property.
All told, according to ownership reps Monday, the new casino would provide a projected $2 billion in economic stimulus, according to an economic benefits analysis performed by a third party. It would also lead to $100 million in tax revenues to the city over the first five years.
PA sports betting competition heats up
The City of Brotherly Love has become the sports betting hotbed in Pennsylvania.
Of the eight brick-and-mortar sportsbooks currently operational, six are located within or just outside of Philly. As a result, Philadelphia sports betting has quickly seen the competition rise.
Those facilities have combined for $70.1 million in handle and $7.1 million in PA sports betting revenue. Combined, Philadelphia-area sportsbooks account for better than 55 percent of PA sports betting action.
Once Live! Casino & Hotel debuts, it will contend with a number of retail sportsbooks, not to mention any PA betting apps that launch. In fact, it will have a competitor in its own backyard. South Philadelphia Turf Club, like the Live! project, benefits from its location in the heart of Philadelphia’s professional sports scene.
