Japan casino bidding could resume next year to fulfill the country’s 2018 gaming law that authorized as many as three integrated resort (IR) developments.
At the direction of then-Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Japan’s National Diet passed its gaming bill to bring Las Vegas and Macau-like casino resorts to the Land of the Rising Sun. Abe and his controlling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) backed the casino legislation to grow tourism.
Seven years later, just one casino license has been awarded and construction is only beginning to move forward in earnest. Japan’s deliberate, unhurried rulemaking process for the governing conditions that will oversee the forthcoming gaming industry, paired with a global pandemic that imbalanced casino companies’ balance sheets and significantly increased labor and construction costs, resulted in most would-be bidders scrapping their plans.
MGM Resorts International was one of only two bids that remained when Japan’s Casino Regulatory Commission finally began reviewing applications in 2023. MGM’s proposal for Osaka was greenlit, but a pitch from Casinos Austria for Nagasaki was dismissed.
GGRAsia, an online gaming media outlet focused on Asian markets, first reported that Japan could initiate a second round of casino bidding next year. However, there has been no official announcement from the Japanese government.
Thailand’s Casino Plans Could Impact Japan’s Market
The source speaking with GGRAsia added that there are concerns regarding a second round of Japan casino bidding and whether previously interested companies would be willing to rethink a major investment in the country. Firms that previously expressed interest only to fold in 2020 included Las Vegas Sands, Melco Resorts, Wynn Resorts, Galaxy Entertainment, Genting Group, and Hard Rock International.
Enthusiasm for a Japanese casino could be subdued by Thailand moving forward with its own gaming liberalization. A bill to authorize casino resorts in Bangkok, Chon Buri, Chiang Mai, and Phuket is expected to pass this year. Sands, Genting, Melco, MGM, and Wynn have expressed interest in a Thailand play.
“There are only a few quality bidders that have the [financial] strength to participate in more than one,” the source, described as a “gaming sector executive,” told GGRAsia. “Based on the terms as we know today, the Thai license will have priority.”
Rise of Online Gambling in Japan
Gambling in Japan is presently limited to parimutuel wagering on horse races, motorsports, and the lottery. That hasn’t stopped millions of residents from gambling unlawfully online, a new report suggests.
Japan’s National Police Agency estimates that nearly 3.4 million people living in Japan gambled online last year, with most participating in illegal, unregulated offshore casino websites. The data probe reported that about four in 10 of those who gambled on the internet were unaware that their actions were illegal.
The police study concluded that ¥1.24 trillion (US$8.4 billion) was bet online in 2024. About three-fourths of the online gambling demographic told researchers that they initially signed up to play free social casino websites and apps but later paid to play real money slots and table games.
Japan plans to mitigate possible social harms of legalizing casinos by charging residents a ¥6,000 (US$40) entrance fee and limiting the number of times they can enter each month.
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