Japanese Resort Casino Not Limited to Major Cities

After reports that new Japanese gambling laws would restrict the building of resort casinos to major cities, it has been announced that regional areas would also be considered, as the government looks to cash in on the tourism boom expected due to the 2020 Olympics.

While punters can currently bet on horse, boat and cycling races, casinos and online casinos in Japan are currently banned, but with this all set the change, the government are looking into the best options for the country as a whole. One of the major barriers in the way is organized crime, with Japan having its fair share of powerful gangs.

As such, there have been a number of proposals for pretty draconian regulation of both the casinos themselves and the operators and their directors.

This hasn’t stopped casino giants such as Wynn Resorts and MGM Resorts International from looking into potential sites in two of Japan’s major cities: capital Tokyo, and Osaka. Yet the latest gambling news points at the potential for a casino outside of these two hubs.

One possible direction a resort casino could go down is aiming to bring in tourism as itself. Any casino in the capital would surely be based mainly on the fact of those millions of Olympic tourists passing through. A casino in a more remote location, however, could look to muscle in on an every expanding Far East Asian gambling market.

Indeed, as Macau has overtaken Las Vegas as the world’s biggest gambling hub, other potential resorts are looking to get in on the act. A new Russian resort casino close to Vladivostok would bring in plenty of Asian gamblers, while Australia are looking to tap into the rich market with plans for a new resort casino of their own. Whatever happens, there are bound to be big changes in Japan over the coming years.