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Las Vegas casino resorts have become a planning model for governments and developers far beyond the United States, according to American Gaming Association President and CEO Bill Miller.
Good to Know
- Miller cited Macau, Singapore, the UAE and Japan as key examples.
- Wynn Al Marjan Island is due to open in the UAE in 2027.
- Prediction markets now consume much of the AGA policy agenda.
Asia Adopts the US Integrated Resort Formula
Miller said the “American blueprint for gaming” now means much more than a casino floor. Hotels, restaurants, retail, concerts and nightlife let resorts attract visitors who may never place a bet.
“They just want to have a good meal, or they want to go to a nice club or shopping venues,” Miller said during an oral history interview published by the UNLV Gaming Law Journal.
Macau provides the clearest example. Las Vegas Sands, MGM Resorts International and Wynn Resorts control three of the six casino concessionaires, while every operator now invests in non-gaming attractions.
Singapore followed a similar route through Marina Bay Sands and Resorts World Sentosa. Meanwhile, the next wave will include Wynn Al Marjan Island in Ras Al Khaimah and MGM Osaka.
“What’s happening in the UAE with Wynn, and what they’re doing in Ras Al Khaimah, it’s going to be the first major casino in the Middle East,” Miller said.
Wynn holds 40% of the $5.1 billion UAE project, which is scheduled to open in early 2027 with 1,530 rooms and a large dining, retail and entertainment offer.
MGM Osaka is due in 2030 and will become the first commercial casino resort in Japan. Miller said those developments show governments increasingly view casinos as part of a wider tourism and entertainment economy.
Prediction Markets Dominate AGA Policy Work
While casino resorts grow overseas, Miller identified prediction markets as the leading legal threat facing licensed US operators.
“Clearly the prediction markets. This is something that takes probably 70 percent of my day,” he said.
Prediction platforms offer sports event contracts under federal Commodity Futures Trading Commission oversight. State regulators and casino groups argue that many products function like sports bets without following state licensing, tax and consumer protection rules.
“We shouldn’t have the federal government being in the sports betting business,” Miller said.
AGA research found that 85% of surveyed Americans view sports event contracts as gambling, while 80% believe regulators should treat them like online sports betting.
Miller said the AGA priority remains protecting licensed operators from businesses that avoid taxes, anti-money laundering controls and background checks.
“The common thematic is that people that don’t want to be licensed, people that don’t want to pay taxes, the people that don’t want to abide by the consumer protections and money laundering protocols that our legal, regulated industry do – that’s pretty much job one.”
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