Mohegan Sun Casino becomes first tribal casino in Las Vegas

March 31, 2021
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The Mohegan Sun Casino will be the first casino run by a tribe in Las Vegas.

The casino will be located at Virgin Hotels Las Vegas, and had a grand opening last week hosted by Mario Lopez, with other celebrities also in attendance. 

The casino was originally owned by British billionaire Richard Branson, who bought what was named the Hard Rock Casino for an undisclosed fee in 2018. Branson decided to transform the casino into a Virgin Hotel location and outsource the gaming operation to the Mohegan Tribe in 2019.

Therefore, the 60,000 square foot venue is run by the Mohegan Tribe, who gained a license from the Nevada Gaming Commission last year, becoming the first tribe to operate a casino in the state.

Prior to this the Tribe already owned a casino in Connecticut, having been operating the Mohegan Sun in Connecticut since it opened in 1996.

The Las Vegas Mohegan Sun features 650 slot machines and more than 50 table games, while the whole resort will contain more than 1,500 suites, a desert pool oasis and will feature live entertainment and events.

Virgin Hotels was originally meant to open last year, but this was pushed back to January 2021. However, with the unpredictability of the pandemic, this was delayed even further.

But since the hotel opened its doors in March, the casino was allowed to follow suit and become the first tribe operated casino in Vegas.

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