Riley Keough Named Sole Trustee of Elvis Presley’s Former Estate

Riley Keough, the eldest of four grandchildren of Elvis Presley, was named the sole trustee of the estate of her late mother, Lisa Marie Presley. The appointment, announced on Sunday, officially settles a legal dispute between Keough and her grandmother, Priscilla Presley, who married Elvis in 1967 but divorced him four years before his 1977 death.

Riley Keough — star of the Amazon series “Daisy Jones & The Six” — is now the owner of Graceland. (Image: Getty)

The appointment — approved by LA Superior Court Judge Lynn Healey Scaduto on Friday — makes Keough, 34, the sole heir to her late mother’s estate, which a Presley executive told Rolling Stone magazine in 2020 was worth between $400 and $500 million.

It also makes her the new owner of Graceland, Elvis’ former mansion in Memphis, Tenn., which Lisa Marie inherited upon her famous father’s death in 1977.

Lisa Marie, the only child of the late rock legend, was the sole beneficiary of a trust that included the Graceland and 15% of the lucrative Elvis Presley Enterprises. In 1993, she appointed her mother and then business manager, Barry Siegel, as co-trustees.

Suspicious Mind

Priscilla Presley, Lisa Marie Presley, and Riley Keough attend a 2015 movie premiere. (Image: Time)

A few weeks after Lisa Marie died suddenly in January at age 54, from what was later determined to be a small bowel obstruction caused by bariatric surgery, Priscilla filed a petition disputing a 2016 amendment to her daughter’s will. That amendment removed her and Siegel as trustees of the estate and replacing them with Lisa Marie’s four children: Riley; her 14-year-old twin half-sisters Harper and Finely Lockwood; and Benjamin Keough, who died by suicide at age 27 in 2020.

Priscilla’s attorneys claimed she only became aware of the amendment after her daughter’s death. They argued that the amendment was never delivered to their client during Lisa Marie’s lifetime. And they argued that the amendment misspelled Priscilla’s name, wasn’t witnessed or notarized, and that “Lisa Marie’s signature appears inconsistent with her usual and customary signature.”

In May, Riley, Priscilla, and Michael Lockwood — Harper and Finley’s father and Lisa Marie’s fourth husband before they divorced — privately settled their dispute, declining to reveal the specific details.

Priscilla will serve as special adviser to what is now her granddaughter’s estate, receiving a monthly stipend for her role. She will also be allowed to be buried at Graceland.

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ICE Conference Takes Place in Barcelona from 2025, iGB Affiliate Moves to London

After six months of bidding, the process of choosing the host city for Clarion Gaming’s ICE and iGB Affiliate conferences is finally over. From 2023, Barcelona will take over the role of the host, and at the same time, iGB L!VE will be held in London.

A tough choice

The shortlist of candidates contained four cities: London, Madrid, Paris, and Barcelona, and it wasn’t easy to agree upon the final decision, and there were more than 30 factors to consider.

The relocation process of the ICE was conducted along with Equimore, a famous event strategy, and location specialist, and the decision was made by the ICE advisory board. By 2025, the 12-year tenure in London will expire, so it’s the right time to relocate. After ExCeL in London, the event will take place at Fira de Barcelona, a space that is placed across 240,000 square meters. A five-year contract is signed with the property, with the start date set for January 20 and January 22.

Clarion Gamin didn’t want to take any chances, so the company already booked 40,000 hotel rooms for the event, and they will inform stakeholders beginning in September.

And why was Barcelona chosen? According to the source, Alex Pratt, the Managing Director at Clarion Gaming, highlighted the city’s magnificent facilities, as well as great infrastructure and logistics. One of the main reasons was ROI for customers and the ability to scale. He stated he was grateful for the efforts the stakeholders made to make the process smooth and come to the right decision. All of the shortlisted cities’ applications were professional and overall good.

Pratt commented: “This was a complex, customer-led undertaking. The process enabled us to identify the city that our customers believe is best equipped to be our strategic partner for the future and is able to host two world-class events which meet the needs of businesses of all sizes and locations across every part of the gaming and ICE community.”

Grateful to ExCeL

Barcelona isn’t the only city that gets a new event. The famous iGB L!VE is moving to London in 2025 after taking place in Amsterdam.

Prat thanked ExCeL London, highlighting all of its help during the last 12 years, saying: “We remain committed to ExCeL London as a great destination and are looking forward to bringing iGB L!VE to London in July 2025 to continue this legacy and provide the perfect backdrop for this fast-growing event’s future in key gaming territory. Now this process is complete, our exclusive focus is on continuing the ICE and iGB Affiliate success stories in partnership with our international stakeholders and delivering an amazing experience in London in 2024.”

The following ICE will be held in London from 6 to 8 February, while the iGB event will take place on 7 and 8 February.

Source: Harrison, Robin. “ICE and iGB Affiliate moving to Barcelona from 2025”. iGaming Business. August 1, 2023.

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DraftKings Positioned to Beat Q2 Estimates, Says Stifel Analyst

With the stock up a staggering 165.5% year-to-date, DraftKings (NASDAQ: DKNG) is heading towards arguably its most important earnings report as a public company.

DraftKings
Inside DraftKings’ Nevada office. The company is heading toward a vital earnings update on Thursday. (Image: Nevada Independent)

The only sportsbook operator is scheduled to deliver second-quarter results on Thursday after the close of US markets with a conference call slated for Friday morning. Analysts expect the gaming to post a loss of 25 cents a share based on generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) on revenue of $758.29 million for the June quarter.

Over the past 90 days, 17 of the analysts covering DraftKings upwardly revised earnings forecasts while none lowered estimates. In a since deleted tweet, CEO Jason Robins provided something of a tease, noting the gaming company notched 80% revenue growth in the first quarter in “vintage” states, or those in which DraftKings has been operational since 2018-19.

He added the company is experiencing “strong growth” in existing states and that there’s “massive potential in new markets.” Although the only specific data point mentioned in the tweet was already known to public investors, there’s speculation that the post may be in violation of the Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) Fair Disclosure policies.

Big Test for DraftKings

DraftKings stock has a penchant for big post-earnings moves in either direction and it’s likely that expectations of positive effects from higher hold and declining costs are baked into the share price.

We see a likely upward bias to estimates, reflecting continued execution on product, sustained rationality in market-wide marketing/promos, and newfound cost discipline,” wrote Stifel analyst Jeffrey Stantial in a note to clients this evening. “However, longer-term we see risk of market share compression as DraftKings rationalizes customer acquisition spend, well-capitalized entrants expand in the U.S., and omni-channel competitors catch-up on product.”

Adding to the burden on DraftKings to deliver the goods tomorrow is the point that, as Stantial notes, the stock is stretched on valuation following this year’s run to the upside.

On the other hand, if DraftKings reports a narrower-than-expected loss and tightens its timeline to profitability, investors may be content to pay up for shares of company that is an entrenched online sports betting leader and adding iGaming market share.

“Still, we expect it will prove difficult to dislodge OSB market share from DraftKings/FanDuel without outsized marketing/promotional campaigns, and increasingly believe it may ultimately require impactful product innovation or structural industry evolution (e.g. transition to more in-play wagering) for a third player to rise to national prominence,” added Stantial.

Speaking of Profitability…

Heading into tomorrow’s earnings report, there may be added burden on DraftKings to provide positive insight regarding when it will stop losing money because rivals BetMGM and Caesars Digital recently posted profitable quarters.

Even if that news doesn’t arrive Thursday, DraftKings is trending in the right direction when it comes to generating significant earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) in the coming years.

“Should current market share & margin expansion trends persist, we believe ~$1B of Adj. EBITDA in 2025E is feasible,” concludes Stantial.

 

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Missouri Casinos in St. Louis County Retain Smoking After Ordinance Extinguished

Missouri casinos in St. Louis County were facing a potential smoking ban after local government officials motioned to prohibit indoor smoking at the two gaming venues.

Missouri casinos smoking St. Louis County
A smoker puffs on a cigarette while a person in the background covers their face in an attempt to avoid secondhand smoke. Missouri casinos in St. Louis County will continue allowing indoor smoking on certain sections of their gaming floors after local officials decided against an indoor smoking ban. (Image: Adobe Stock)

St. Louis County borders the independent city of St. Louis. The county is home to two commercial casinos, Hollywood Casino St. Louis in Maryland Heights, and River City Casino Lemay. Both properties are operated by Penn Entertainment, which was Penn National Gaming until a year ago this month when the Pennsylvania-based gaming firm underwent a rebranding.

Dr. Kanika Cunningham, the county health department director, encouraged the casino smoking ban to be implemented. Currently, the two casinos can designate up to 30% of their gaming floors for indoor smoking.

Even if there are partial smoking restrictions, there’s no way to allow for smoke-free air,” Cunningham said before the council in May. “The current ventilation systems can reduce the odor but it does not reduce the level of hazardous exposure.”

Officials representing Penn Entertainment took the other side and petitioned the St. Louis County Council to vote against the proposal to eliminate indoor casino smoking. The company argued that such a regulation would place its two Missouri casinos at a competitive disadvantage with casinos elsewhere in the Show-Me State, including casinos in St. Louis proper and East St. Louis, Il.

Penn’s argument resonated, as the County Council shelved the no-smoking ordinance during its Tuesday night meeting.

Hollywood Casino reported to the Missouri Gaming Commission having 685 employees at the end of 2022. River City reported 610 employees.

Patchwork Smoking Regulatory Environment

Missouri lawmakers took a bit of an atypical approach to regulating indoor smoking when they passed the state’s Clean Indoor Air Law in 2002. The statute prohibits indoor tobacco use in most public and private places, including workplaces, most retail and commercial establishments, schools and places of learning, restaurants that don’t derive the majority of their revenue from alcohol or tobacco sales, childcare facilities, and health care facilities.

Exemptions were provided for bars and taverns, bowling alleys, billiard parlors, and gaming venues like casinos. The state law tasked counties and municipalities with determining whether to allow smoking inside those kinds of businesses. The state statute does limit indoor smoking to no more than 30% of the total indoor floor space.

The state law doesn’t require exempt places from offering indoor smoking areas.

Competitive Landscape

Missouri is home to 13 riverboat and land-based casinos, and all remain with indoor smoking sections. Penn’s two properties are among the most successful of the baker’s dozen of casinos.

During the state’s 2023 fiscal year that ended June 30, River City generated gross gaming revenue (GGR) of more than $254.8 million. That ranked second in the state behind only Ameristar Casino Resort St. Charles at $303 million. Penn’s Hollywood Casino ranked third at approximately $243.6 million.

Casinos share 21% of their gross gaming income with the state and, additionally, pay a $2 per person admission tax. River City counted about 4.1 million patrons during the 12-month period, while Hollywood Casino welcomed about 3.7 million guests.

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Los Angeles Dodgers Add Four Players Prior to Trade Deadline

The Los Angeles Dodgers acquired relief pitcher Mike Kelly and utilityman Enrique Hernandez prior to the trade deadline, and both players were a part of the team that won the 2020 World Series. The Dodgers also added starting pitcher Lance Lynn and shortstop Amed Rosario in trades this week.

Enrqiue Hernandez
Los Angeles Dodgers acquired utilityman Enrique Hernandez, seen here celebrating a victory with the Boston Red Sox, in a trade to bring back the former Dodger. (Image: AP)

The Atlanta Braves are the best team in the National League with a 65-38 record. The Dodgers are the second-best team in the NL at 58-44, even though their pitching staff has been ravished with injuries. The Cincinnati Reds (57-48) are the surprise team in the NL this season, and they’re fighting to win the NL Central title thanks to a double-digit winning streak in June.

The Braves and Dodgers are among the most active teams at the deadline. They top two World Series favorites seek to strengthen their rosters for a postseason run. The Braves attempt to win a second World Series in the last three seasons, and the Dodgers are on a mission to deliver a second championship since 2020. Both teams had disappointing exits in the 2022 MLB playoffs.

Hollywood ER: Banged-Up Dodgers

The Dodgers’ starting rotation is in shambles. They lost starting pitcher Dustin May to season-ending elbow surgery. Former ace Clayton Kershaw is currently on the IL. Walker Buehler has been slowly recovering from Tommy John surgery. Noah Syndergaard was a bust. Julio Urias has been healthy, but inconsistent.

Manager Dave Roberts had been rolling the dice with a trio of rookies — Michael Grove, Bobby Miller, and Emmet Sheehan, Bobby Miller — all of whom stepped up and provided the Dodgers with strong outings. The Dodgers know they’ll need additional arms down the stretch, especially veterans when the postseason rolls around.

The Dodgers also parted ways with Syndergaard. The right-handed starting pitcher nicknamed “Thor” due to his long hair, signed a one-year contract this past offseason. Syndergaard posted a 1-4 record with a 7.16 ERA and 1.45 WHIP in 12 starts with the Dodgers before he headed to the IL with blisters on his pitching hand. They traded him to the Cleveland Guardians where he expects to get a fresh start.

The Dodgers added righty starter Lance Lynn in a trade with the White Sox. Lynn struggled this season with a 6-9 record in 21 starts. He posted a 6.47 ERA and 1.46 WHIP, and coughed up an MLB-leading 28 home runs this season. Roberts will rely on Lynn to soak up innings in August.

The Dodgers are still shopping for starting pitchers, which is why there’s plenty of rumors swirling around Tinsel Town that they have their sights on Justin Verlander from the New York Mets.

Dodgers Bring Back Hernandez and Kelly

The Dodgers acquired the versatile Hernandez in a trade with the Boston Red Sox for right-handed relief pitchers Nick Robertson and Justin Hagenman. Roberts will platoon Hernandez at second base, and he could also see time in the outfield.

It’s weird to be here,” said Hernandez. “It feels like it’s been forever, but at the same time it feels like it was yesterday that I was here.”

Hernandez was an integral part of the 2020 team that won the World Series. He spent six seasons with the Dodgers, and the feisty Hernandez had become a fan favorite during his previous stint. Hernandez struggled with the Red Sox, and hit only .222 this season.

The Dodgers also added another member of their 2020 championship squad with Kelly. The right-handed reliever spent three seasons with the Dodgers between 2019-21.

Kelly battled injuries this season including a strained groin and elbow inflammation. He appeared in 35 games with the White Sox this season. He went 1-5 with a 4.97 ERA and 1.31 WHIP.

“I would argue that Kelly’s stuff — the velocity, the curveball — is even better than it was when he was with us,” said Roberts. “He’s a guy, like most players, when they’re in a winning environment, they thrive.”

The Dodgers sent outfielder Trayce Thompson to the White Sox, along with minor league pitchers Nick Nastrini and Jordan Leasure to complete the trade for Kelly and Lynn.

The Dodgers also acquired shortstop Amed Rosario from the Guardians in a trade for Syndergaard. Rosario appeared in 94 games with the Guardians and posted a slashline of .265/.306/.369.

Betting the Dodgers Down the Stretch

The Braves are the consensus favorite to win the 2023 World Series at +330 odds, and the Dodgers are second on DraftKings’ futures board at +500 odds.

The Braves are +160 odds to win the NL pennant, and the Dodgers are right behind them at +240 odds.

The Dodgers have a 13.4% chance to win the World Series, according to FanGraphs. The Braves are the only team with a higher projection with a 24.8% chance to secure a World Series victory.

The Dodgers dominated the NL West over the last decade with nine division titles. They won 104 or more games four times since 2017, but failed to win the World Series in any of those seasons. Last year, the Dodgers won a franchise-best 111 games, but were eliminated in the NLDS by the San Diego Padres.

Despite some phenomenal seasons since 2017, the Dodgers only have one World Series victory which occurred during the pandemic-shortened season of 2020.

The Dodgers hold a two-game lead over the San Francisco Giants in the NL West standings. The Dodgers are huge favorites at -500 odds to win the NL West for a tenth time in the last 11 seasons. The Giants are +650 odds to win the division for a second time since 2021. According to FanGraphs, the Dodgers have a 78% chance to secure the NL West crown, and the Giants have only 11.8% chance to win the division.

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