Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban voiced his desire for casino-focused resorts in Texas last week at Chase’s Make Your Move Summit.
Cuban, who has a net worth of roughly $6.2 billion, believes resorts that offer casino gaming in the Lone Star State can attract a bevy of tourists.
“When you think of all the places you want to save up to vacation, Texas isn’t one of them,” said Cuban. “There’s no real destination that you save up for. That’s a problem, and I think resort gaming would have a huge impact.”
Cuban has a vision for Texas gaming that includes a new arena for the Mavericks being the focal point of a casino-focused resort. The 65-year-old said he would like to partner with Las Vegas Sands on the venture. Until then, the American Airlines Center will undergo renovations.
Longshot
Cuban’s willingness to embrace casino gaming at resorts in Texas is far from reality due to a long history of lawmakers opposing the industry along with the emerging sports betting market.
For casino gaming to be authorized in Texas, a constitutional amendment is required, which would need to garner at least a two-thirds vote from lawmakers. As a result, 21 out of 31 senators would need to approve the change. The casino and sports betting industries have yet to find favor with state lawmakers, according to Texas Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick.
Texans will have to wait until at least 2025 for opportunities to take advantage of casino gaming and sports betting as the state’s legislature only sits in odd-numbered years. Gambling operators are continuing to miss out on a promising market that has a population of 30 million.
The demand for gaming in Texas is apparent following the 1.14 million attempts that were made to place wagers in the state between Sept. 1 and Oct. 23. — a 68.5% increase year-over-year, according to the Texas Sports Betting Alliance. The uptick coincided with the Texas Rangers appearing in MLB’s American League Championship Series against the Houston Astros.
More than 20,000 wager attempts were recorded during the final three games of the series. The Rangers would go on to win the ALCS before capturing the franchise’s first World Series title.
