Name: The U.A.E.’s First Legal Casino: Wynn Resorts’ Big Bet
Uploaded: 2025-10-29T04:00:00Z
Duration: 6 min 17 s
Description: Wynn Resorts is building a $5.1 billion resort that will be the U.A.E.'s first-ever casino. But some experts question if the bet will pay off in a conservative region.

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Wynn Resorts is building a $5.1 billion resort that will be the U.A.E.'s first-ever casino. But some experts question if the bet will pay off in a conservative region. Photo: Wynn Resorts

https://m.wsj.net/video/20251024/5288426a-fa07-414b-ab49-2c65ce7896ac/1/hls/manifest-hd-wifi.m3u8

Wynn Resorts is building a $5.1 billion resort that will be the U.A.E.'s first-ever casino. But some experts question if the bet will pay off in a conservative region.

The U.A.E.’s First Legal Casino: Wynn Resorts’ Big Bet

Reporter: In a region of the world that's long forbidden gambling, a Las Vegas giant is going all in with the UAE's first-ever casino, part of a $5.1 billion resort. Even as tourism gets more competitive in the Middle East, analysts view the UAE's gambling pivot as a bold move.

We really don't do small. We really only look at gateway cities that can support very large-scale development.

Reporter: The question is whether this gamble will pay off or if building a casino in a deeply conservative society could be a massive mistake. The casino is being built here, Al Marjan Island. It's a manmade archipelago dredged more than a decade ago in Ras Al Khaimah. It's the northernmost emirate in the UAE, and while it's about an hour's drive from Dubai, it's a world apart from its glitzier neighbor with far less development and more rugged landscapes. Now, Ras Al Khaimah's leaders are trying to leverage that natural beauty to create a hub for tourism, and they're trying to drive investment by developing the country's first casino with Wynn.

From a new opportunity and new development perspective, this is the most exciting market for what we do to open in many, many years. After this project opens, 95% of the world's population will be within an eight-hour flight of a Wynn Resort. No other integrated resort company can say that.

Reporter: When it opens in 2027, Wynn says the casino resort will have more than 1,500 hotel rooms, 22 restaurants, and 130,000 square feet of retail space in addition to 12 pools, a theater, and a private beach.

Gaming operation is inherently an important revenue driver, no doubt, but generally it's actually a very small percentage of the larger resort.

Reporter: While Wynn will have the only casino, dozens more hotels and residential projects are planned on Al Marjan Island from brands like JW Marriott, Nobu, and Fairmont. Ras Al Khaimah's Tourism Department Authority expects the resorts and entertainment facilities to help increase tourism from 1.3 million annual guests to 3.5 million by 2030. The emirate could use more visitors because it's much poorer than its neighbors. In 2024, Ras Al Khaimah had a GDP per capita of $31,100 compared to 79,000 in Abu Dhabi.

They are struggling a lot. They're not only competing with the citizens of other emirates, but also a large number of expatriate population.

Reporter: Mira Al Hussein says that despite Ras Al Khaimah's lucrative ceramics and pharmaceutical industries, many locals still can't get jobs. While new resorts will need thousands of employees, Al Hussein said many locals won't want to be associated with gambling or alcohol for religious or social reasons, especially in a more conservative northern emirate like Ras Al Khaimah. Wynn says it already has more than a hundred thousand work applications, but added most employees will come from abroad.

The way they justify it is saying, "This is meant for the expats. This is meant for the foreigners. This is not for us."

Reporter: In theory, the government would funnel casino and resort profits into more benefits for citizens. Emiratis receive free or subsidized housing, healthcare, and education, though locals increasingly struggle with rising costs of living. But in Ras Al Khaimah, some experts worry profits from the development won't reach regular people.

Infrastructure wise, Ras Al Khaimah is not as developed as Dubai or even Sharjah. It had a headstart in terms of industry and diversification and its revenue was huge. Now, did that trickle down to the people? Not really. The roads remained unpaved. The healthcare system was very, very rudimentary.

Reporter: Al Hussein says many locals blame the kingdom's leader, who they say is much less accessible than rulers have been in the past.

In 2018, I was doing preliminary research around Ras Al Khaimah speaking to young men who have come out of conscription, and the ruling family in Ras Al Khaimah was sort of being undermined by the ruler's self-interest.

Reporter: In a statement, Ras Al Khaimah said the government "is focused on creating long-term economic growth and quality of life for everyone that calls the emirate their home" and that its strategy "is underpinned by transparent governance and strong fiscal management." While the project is unlikely to receive public pushback because dissent is illegal in the UAE, another question is whether this is viable long term. As part of its investment, Wynn gets exclusive rights to have the only casino in Ras Al Khaimah for 15 years, but other emirates could still open their own casinos and MGM resorts has already applied for a license in Abu Dhabi. Some analysts worry that Ras Al Khaimah could struggle to maintain tourism traffic after competitors open.

I don't know how sustainable that is to kind of bank on the idea that a lot of people are gonna come and bring their money and buy their real estate there. And if, let's say, Dubai chooses to bring another casino, would people still go to Ras Al Khaimah when they could just go to Dubai? I assume the ruling elites are thinking just short term to accrue as much money as they can and just be prepared for the worst.

Reporter: But Wynn says it's already planned for competition.

We operate in the two most competitive markets in the world, Las Vegas and Macau, so we feel very confident competing in a duopoly or, frankly, an open market. The UAE is one of the major airlift hubs in the world. You also have a large local population and GDP per capita in the market is incredibly strong. So you have all the elements to build a very strong customer base.

Reporter: The UAE will gain a tourism edge by introducing a casino, a move many of its Gulf neighbors would not consider for religious reasons. But for Wynn and the casino industry overall, the UAE is just one piece of a broader expansion plan as more of the world opens up to gambling.

Other than a few US states, US growth in what we do isn't what it used to be. And so I think the opportunities will be increasingly international. Beyond the UAE, where we're obviously very focused, Japan is moving forward. Thailand is talking about the potential for integrated resorts to drive tourism and drive GDP. Certainly it opens doors that weren't previously opened, no doubt.

Breaking Ground digs into megaprojects around the world, uncovering what these developments might mean for the surrounding region and the ultimate costs.