Sale of MontBleu is complete; now owned by Bally's Corporation
Submitted by paula on Sat, 04/10/2021 - 5:00am
STATELINE, Nev. - Bally's Corporation has announced that it has completed the previously announced acquisition of MontBleu Resort Casino & Spa from Caesars Entertainment, Inc.
"MontBleu is a premier entertainment asset that is commensurate with the iconic Bally's brand, and advances our ongoing portfolio diversification strategy," said President and Chief Executive Officer of Bally's Corporation George Papanier. "With the close of this transaction, we look forward to integrating the property into the Bally's family, and utilizing it as an attractive destination for our loyal Bally's customers to drive visitation to Lake Tahoe."
In June 2019 Eldorado Resorts Inc of Reno agreed to merge with Caesars Entertainment in a cash and stock deal that valued at about $18 billion, including debt. That transaction was completed in July 2020.
In March 2020, it was announced that El Dorado Resorts (now Caesars Entertainment) had entered into definitive agreement with Maverick Gaming LLC for the 43-year-old MontBleu property. That company backed out of the deal a month later.
The deal with Bally's was first detailed in April 2020 in a $155M joint deal that would also see the operator gain Louisiana’ Eldorado Shreveport Resort and Casino, which subsequently gained completion in December of last year. Shreveport had originally been included in the MontBleu deal with Maaverick Gaming.
"I want to thank the Team Members of MontBleu for all of their hard work and dedication throughout the years with the Caesars organization, particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic," said Tom Reeg, CEO of Caesars Entertainment, Inc. "We wish all of them continued success under Bally's ownership."
Twin River Worldwide Holdings completed its name change to Bally’s Corporation this past November. They purchased the brand from Caesars Entertainment. Since then they have been rebranding the company. The deal between the two gaming companies allows Twin River to maintain the Bally’s name for the Atlantic City property the are purchasing from Caesars, and Caesars will have a perpetual license to use the Bally’s brand at its existing Bally’s Las Vegas Hotel & Casino property.
Bally's Corporation currently owns and manages 12 casinos across eight states, a horse racetrack and 13 authorized OTB (off-track betting) licenses in Colorado. With more than 6,000 employees, the Company's operations include 13,308 slot machines, 460 game tables and 3,342 hotel rooms. Following the completion of pending acquisitions, which include Tropicana Evansville (Evansville, IN) and Jumer's Casino & Hotel (Rock Island, IL), as well as the construction of a land-based casino near the Nittany Mall in State College, PA, Bally's will own and manage 15 casinos across 11 states. Bally's also maintains a multi-year market access partnership with Elite Casino Resorts through which it will provide mobile sports betting in Iowa, as well as a temporary sports wagering permit to conduct online sports betting in the Commonwealth of Virginia.