• Though highly anticipated for its gaming features, Wynn Al Marjan Island will offer non-gaming amenities and will house 1,542 rooms and suites, including 22 private villa estates.
Wynn Resorts, a hotel and casino operator, has received the UAE’s first commercial gaming operator’s license. The General Commercial Gaming Regulatory Authority (GCGRA) announced this development to Khaleej Times on Saturday.
The Las Vegas-based casino firm is constructing Wynn Al Marjan Island, the first integrated gaming resort in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region. Set to open to the public in early 2027, this multi-billion dollar project is being developed on an island spanning nearly 62 hectares in the Arabian Gulf.
In a statement, Wynn Resorts announced that the “commercial gaming facility operator license” has been issued to the “entity developing the Wynn Al MarjanIsland resort in Ras Al Khaimah.” This ‘entity’ is a joint venture between affiliates of Wynn Resorts, Marjan, and RAK Hospitality Holding.
The GCGRA defines ‘commercial gaming’ as any game of chance or a combination of chance and skill “where an amount of money, in cash or cash equivalents, is wagered – i.e., placed as a bet – for the purpose of winning a sum of money or other valuable items.” Among the gaming operators specified by the GCGRA are land-based gaming facilities.
The licence award follows a “diligent and extensive review” by the GCGRA. Wynn Resorts thanks the GCGRA for the confidence and trust the licence grant signifies and is proud to be the recipient of the first commercial gaming facility licence in the UAE. “We are underway with the construction of our resort in Ras Al Khaimah and look forward to being a key partner in the development of its tourism economy.”
This is the second licence issued by the GCGRA, an independent executive entity within the UAE federal government that regulates, licenses, and supervises all commercial gaming activities and facilities in the UAE. In July, the gaming authority awarded a licence to operate the country’s first authorised lottery to Abu Dhabi-based The Game LLC.
Though highly anticipated for its gaming features, Wynn Al Marjan Island will also offer non-gaming amenities. It will house 1,542 rooms and suites, including 22 private villa estates. This will be the first Wynn Resort — among its six properties in Las Vegas, Macau, and Boston Harbor — to be located on a beach.
Construction on the project began in early 2023, with a 300-meter-tall resort tower expected to be topped off in the fourth quarter of 2025.
Source: KhaleejTimes
