Bally's has announced that it will launch the first phase of its new Las Vegas hotel simultaneously with A's ballpark.

After months of conjecture and secrecy, Bally's Corp chairman Soo Kim finally acknowledged that the operator is planning to launch the first phase of its new Las Vegas complex at the same time as the Oakland Athletics' new stadium on the same site.

Kim stated in remarks published in the Las Vegas Review-Journal on Tuesday (22 October) that Bally's is "working pretty hard" to complete plans to "at least build Phase 1 and open at the same time as the ballpark." The A's 33,000-seat stadium, which cost $1.5 billion (£1.15 billion/€1.39 billion), is scheduled to debut in the spring of 2028.

On a plot that spans 35 acres, the stadium will occupy nine of them. On the remaining land, Bally's will construct its property in three stages. Following the implosion of the Tropicana Las Vegas on October 9, construction can now commence for both sites.

Both Bally's and the site are owned by Gaming and Leisure Properties (GLPI), which was leasing it out prior to the collapse. For "mutually beneficial developments," GLPI had earlier promised to invest $175 million into the Las Vegas location. In order to fund its Chicago casino, Bally's has teamed with GLPI as well. Whether or when the parties will reach a comparable agreement in Sin City is an open question.

New materials were filed to Clark County officials earlier this month by Bally's, GLPI, and the A's. A number of interested parties, however, have hastened to point out that these were not official designs. Instead, they were "a representation" of the site's potential appearance when constructed, as Kim put it.

Casino, hotel tower, and some other amenities will be part of Phase 1.
While the details are still being worked out, Kim assured the Review-Journal that the initial stage will be quite easy.

In the first phase, there will be a casino, a hotel tower, and several food and beverage establishments. "On a certain level," he remarked. "As time goes on, additional rooms and guest amenities will be added."

A poker room, 75 tables, a sportsbook, and 1,500 slot machines are all part of the 90,000 square feet of gaming area that the county has approved. With a total of 3,000 rooms, the hotel towers would be constructed in three stages. Compared to the old Tropicana, that's almost twice as many.

In the spring, the A's hope to start building the stadium. While Bally's just has to build one section of the project to meet the timeframe, the project as a whole must be finished by the 2028 MLB season.

"We do have a bit more time than they do," Kim said the Review-Journal. It may take around two years to complete this [first phase of the resort]. Perhaps more like two than three years... Similarly, while they're making progress on their plans, we're only getting started. As far as I can see, things are heading in the correct way.

Time is flying by for Bally's, Kim
This most recent announcement makes Bally's the most active US casino operator right now. The company is working on a number of projects, including a multibillion-dollar casino in Chicago, an application for a casino licence in the Bronx in downstate New York, an application for a casino in Missouri, and a project in Las Vegas.

On July 25th, Kim's hedge fund, Standard General, paid $18.25 per share to acquire the company as well. A regional operator also controlled by the fund, Queen Casino & Entertainment, was merged with Bally's as part of the acquisition.

That amount was significantly lower than Standard's earlier January 2022 offer of $38 per share. This reflects the more indebted state of Bally's operations in the years following the acquisition, although the GLPI agreement and buyout have served to stabilise the company.