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Bally’s Corporation and Gaming & Leisure Properties (GLPI) have announced a binding agreement with the Oakland Athletics of Major League Baseball (Oakland A’s) to construct a Major League Baseball park at Bally’s Tropicana Las Vegas.

Bally’s consummated its purchase of the gaming and other assets when GLPI and PENN transferred ownership of the non-land assets of the Tropicana Las Vegas to Bally’s for $148 million in cash paid to GLPI on September 27, 2022.

Bally’s still intends to operate a casino from the location and expand assets on other portions of the property.

2.5 Million New Visits to the Location Expected Annually

The park is expected to deliver two and a half million fans per year to the only site of its type on the Las Vegas Strip. Benefits heralded in the announcement include enhanced attraction at the site driven by increased visitations, and the ability to further develop the site in a phased manner with a financial approach based on disciplined further investment.

Additional enhancements for iconic and sponsoring brands at one of the busiest traffic intersections in America which sees over seven-million visitor impressions each month, and significant marketing database growth for Bally’s to exploit as part of its global omnichannel growth strategy.

GLPI maintained ownership of the property which it had earlier purchased and was leased back to Penn National Gaming prior to Bally’s purchasing the gaming assets, license rights, etc. GLPI will pitch in up to $175 million toward improvements and receive future rent increases based on the increased value.

Bally’s is also banking on increased footfall for the casino and other assets through the ballpark and other attractions.

The Oakland A’s or stadium authority will have about 9 acres of the 35-acre site assigned for development by Bally’s and GLPI. The stadium would hold as many as 30,000 visitors at a time.

Oakland’s Triple-A minor league team, the Aviators already calls Las Vegas home.

Bally’s Confident but Hedging its Bet

Bally’s kept an Ace in the hole to assign assets and attract other partners, and it has other parties expressing interest in a similar offering. However, it is expected the necessary approvals from the MLB Association as well as public finance and legislative agreements will all come into place to make the current plan a reality.

Bally’s President, George Papanier, said “We are honored to have been selected to partner with the Oakland Athletics on this monumental step in helping to bring Major League Baseball to the great city of Las Vegas and to be a part of the once-in-a-generation opportunity of having a professional baseball team located within a short walk of the Las Vegas Strip.

“The Tropicana has been a landmark of Las Vegas for generations, and this development will enhance this iconic site for generations to come. We are committed to ensuring that the development and ballpark built in its place will become a new landmark, paying homage to the iconic history and global appeal of Las Vegas and its nearly 50 million visitors a year,” Papanier noted.

Among other comments, Peter Carlino, Chairman and CEO of Gaming & Leisure Properties said: “We are pleased to help facilitate their exciting vision for a new ballpark through our contribution of nine acres of the Tropicana site and look forward to the prominent place that the overall project will occupy in the Las Vegas skyline. The Oakland Athletics’ interest in developing a world-class Major League Baseball stadium on our site underscores its status as one of the most prime locations on the Las Vegas Strip and will enhance any future development of our remaining 26 acres.

“As the project moves forward, we also expect that Gaming & Leisure Properties will have opportunities to further invest in the various aspects of the overall project to the extent we deem that doing so will generate an attractive risk-adjusted return on our shareholders’ capital.”

Oakland A’s President Dave Kaval added: “We are excited about the potential to bring Major League Baseball to this iconic location. We are thrilled to work alongside Bally’s and Gaming & Leisure Properties, and look forward to finalizing plans to bring the Athletics to Southern Nevada.”

Source: Bally’s to replace Las Vegas Strip casino with MLB ballpark, G3 Newswire, May 16, 2023

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Following another round of meetings between team officials and Las Vegas business leaders, it’s clear the Oakland Athletics are eyeing two sites on the Strip should the team move to Sin City — the fairgrounds owned by Circus Circus and the Tropicana.

The Major League Baseball (MLB) club has long-rumored interest in Las Vegas and it originally had a list of 20 potential sites for a new, $1 billion stadium. But that roster, as was widely believed would happen, has been whittled to two. It’s clear that land owned by Wynn Resorts on the Strip is out of the running, as a company spokesperson told the Las Vegas Review-Journal it’s not interested in a ballpark being built on that property.

That leaves the 37-acre fairgrounds and recreational vehicle (RV) park near Circus Circus and the Tropicana, which have also been epicenters of long-running MLB stadium rumors, as the A’s preferred sites.

North Strip, Downtown Operators Support A’s Move

A’s officials were in Las Vegas yesterday meeting with executives from North Strip and downtown casinos. That group is supportive of the team’s efforts to move to Las Vegas, citing benefits such as job creation and increased visits to area casino-hotels.

At issue is the point that Circus Circus owner Phil Ruffin apparently didn’t participate in the meeting, nor did he comment to the press about any talks with the A’s. The last remarks he made on the issue were late last year, indicating he hadn’t recently been in touch with officials from the team. That’s relevant because Circus Circus is considered part of the North Strip.

Conversely, Tropicana is closer to the southern end of the Strip, and Bally’s executives have confirmed recent talks with the A’s. Last year, executives from Gaming and Leisure Properties — the owner of Tropicana’s real estate — said the A’s are interested in that site.

Should the team proceed with moving to Las Vegas and select Tropicana as a stadium site, Gaming and Leisure could sell the land to the franchise while providing compensation to Bally’s.

Other Issues Surrounding A’s Las Vegas Move

While the A’s appear set on the fairgrounds or Tropicana as a stadium site, and the team has approval from MLB to move, speculation remains that the ball club is simply using Las Vegas as leverage to force Oakland policymakers to sign off on a new stadium plan in the Bay Area. That theory isn’t a stretch when considering Oakland already lost the NFL’s Raiders to Las Vegas.

There are other moving parts. MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred agreed to waive the A’s relocation fee. But he and the team want some public financing for a Las Vegas stadium — something voters may be loathe to support.

Waiting on an expansion team could take years and be far more expensive than simply building a stadium for the A’s in Las Vegas. As Circa CEO Derek Stevens told the Review-Journal, an expansion franchise could cost up to $2 billion, and that doesn’t include the price of a new ballpark.

The post Oakland A’s Eyeing Two Strip Sites for Las Vegas Move appeared first on Casino.org.

Major League Baseball Park, Oakland A’s to Join Bally’s Tropicana Las Vegas

2.5 Million New Visits to the Location Expected Annually

Bally’s Confident but Hedging its Bet

Oakland A’s Eyeing Two Strip Sites for Las Vegas Move

North Strip, Downtown Operators Support A’s Move

Other Issues Surrounding A’s Las Vegas Move

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