Because the competitors heats up within the race to safe one of up to three New York casino licenses, MGM Resorts has unexpectedly pulled out of the operating. The MGM Yonkers arm formally withdrew its industrial on line casino license utility to the New York Gaming Fee and the Gaming Facility Location Board.
“Immediately, MGM Resorts made the tough choice to withdraw its utility for a industrial on line casino license in Yonkers, New York,” reads the statement from MGM Resorts. “Since submitting our utility in June, the aggressive and financial assumptions underpinning our utility have shifted, altering our return expectations on the proposed $2.3 billion funding.
MGM dropping its Yonkers on line casino license utility after years of planning and producing group help – and two months from the licensing choice – is without doubt one of the most surprising strikes (when it comes to unlikelihood) up to now decade of gaming trade developments
— Ryan Butler (@ButlerBets) October 14, 2025
“The newly outlined aggressive panorama – with 4 proposals clustered in a small geographic space – challenges the returns we initially anticipated from this undertaking.
“Additionally, our proposal to renovate and increase Empire Metropolis On line casino was predicated on the receipt of a 30-year industrial on line casino license however based mostly on newly issued steering from the State of New York we now count on to qualify for less than a 15-year license. Taken collectively, these occasions end in a proposition that not aligns with our dedication to capital stewardship, nor to that of our actual property companion in Yonkers, VICI.”
The corporate went on to underline its continued presence in New York through the Empire Metropolis On line casino, bought again in 2019.
“We all know our choice will influence many people; we stay dedicated to working the property in its present format and imagine it’ll proceed to take pleasure in success serving clients in Yonkers and the encircling communities,’ MGM Resorts wrote.
What’s subsequent for the New York on line casino bid battle?
Because it stands after MGM’s withdrawal, three bids remain for up to three slots: Citi Subject in Queens, Genting Group’s Resorts World New York Metropolis, and Bally’s Bronx on line casino. Simply because there are as much as three licenses out there, doesn’t imply they’ll all be permitted.
The mandatory licensing steps nonetheless have to happen, in addition to paying a minimal of $500 million for the license itself.
Featured picture: MGM Resorts
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