Bally's

History

Bally's Corporation traces its origins to 2004 when a joint venture named BLB Investors was formed by Starwood Capital Group, Kerzner International, and the Waterford Group to acquire Wembley plc, a British operator of racetracks and slot parlors. The venture purchased Lincoln Park, a greyhound track and slots parlor in Rhode Island, in 2005 and embarked on a $220 million expansion, renaming the property Twin River in 2007. After filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 2009 during the global recession, the company emerged under creditor ownership in 2010 and changed its name to Twin River Worldwide Holdings in 2011. Over the next decade, Twin River grew through acquisitions: Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Biloxi (2014), Newport Grand in Rhode Island (2015, relocated to Tiverton), and several other properties. The most transformative move came in 2020 when Twin River acquired the rights to the historic Bally's brand from Caesars Entertainment and rebranded the entire company as Bally's Corporation. The Bally's name itself dates to 1932 as a Chicago pinball manufacturer (Bally Manufacturing) that later expanded into slot machines, video games (Pac-Man), health clubs, and casinos before being broken up.

Business Model & Segments

Today's Bally's Corporation is a modern, tech-forward operator with three main business segments: Casinos & Resorts (19 physical casinos), North America Interactive (online sports betting and iGaming), and International Interactive (lottery and digital gaming via Bally's Intralot). Key properties include Bally's Atlantic City, Bally's Twin River Lincoln (Rhode Island), Bally's Kansas City, Bally's Quad Cities (Iowa), and the temporary Chicago casino at Medinah Temple. The company also operates a landside casino resort in Marquette, Iowa (opened 2026) and has pending projects in Chicago (full resort) and the Bronx. In 2025, Bally's reported consolidated revenue of $2.4 billion with a net loss of $187.5 million, reflecting heavy investment in new properties and technology.

Key Properties & Projects

Bally's is currently building a $2.07 billion integrated resort in Chicago's River West neighborhood, with funding secured in 2025 and expected to open in September 2026. The company has also entered into a sale-leaseback agreement with Gaming and Leisure Properties totaling $1.585 billion to finance its expansion. Other notable holdings include Bally's Atlantic City, Bally's Black Hawk (Colorado), Bally's Dover (Delaware), Bally's Evansville (Indiana), Bally's Shreveport (Louisiana, acquired 2026), and developable land in Las Vegas at the former Tropicana site. The Star Entertainment Group subsidiary operates two Australian casinos in Sydney and Gold Coast.

Financial & Ownership

Bally's is majority owned by Standard General (74%) with a 10% stake held by founder Noel Hayden. The company became the first publicly traded gaming company to achieve Minority Business Enterprise (MBE) certification through the National Minority Supplier Development Council (NMSDC) in 2024. Bally's employs over 12,000 people as of 2025 and generates annual revenue of approximately $2.4 billion. The company's stock is listed on the NYSE under ticker BALY.