China’s Only Legal Slot Machines

The small island of Macau is the only place in China where you can legally gamble and play the slot machines. This small colony used to be barely a blip on the map – now it is home to some of the largest slot machine casinos in the world, as well as some of the biggest gamblers. Macau is second only to Las Vegas at this point, and many think that they will take over Vegas this year in slot machine and gambling revenue.

“Macau over the next few years is going to develop into something unique and will neither be a replica of Las Vegas, Atlantic City or Australian gaming," says Ciaran Carruthers, SVP of Galaxy Resort.

Most of the gamblers who come to play the slot machines are from China, and as you walk around you can hear the dialects being spoken around you – Fujian, Beijing, Shanghai – they are responsible for the influx in slot machine revenue. The Grand Waldo is just opening now, and it is the first casino to open on the Cotai Strip, and has 334 slot machines for the playing.

Las year Vegas brought in roughly $6.4 billion in slot machine and gaming revenue; Macau brought in a little over $6 billion. Many believe that at the rate the island is growing, their slot machine revenue will be well over that figure this year. This year they will see the opening of several more slot machine casinos including the Venetian Macau from the Sand’s group. It will also be located on the Cotai Strip.

"How Macau changes and develops will be very closely linked to the change and development in China. Right now most of our [slot machine and gambling] players are from the middle and lower classes in China, and it is the ever growing middle class that will drive growth here," says Carruthers.

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