In 2025, several macroeconomic and regulatory headwinds in the US cooled expectations for brick-and-mortar casino expansion, especially in markets like Las Vegas and New York. As the industry looks ahead to 2026, the focus is shifting to identifying the next major areas of growth.
While unexpected developments are always possible, three key regions currently stand out as the main areas to watch in the year ahead.
- Texas
- Georgia
- Indianapolis
Texas remains a top long-term target for Las Vegas Sands, and the company is expected to renew its efforts in 2026, which is a non-legislative year. Progress toward gambling expansion in the state has so far been slow, not only for Sands but for all industry stakeholders.
Georgia has also gained attention as a possible casino market after a House committee held several discussions on gaming expansion in 2025. However, as with Texas, Georgia has historically resisted gambling expansion, and its prospects may be less attractive by comparison.
Indianapolis, meanwhile, could emerge as a surprise contender. Growing speculation around potential licence relocations within Indiana has sparked interest, though these possibilities have yet to be tested. That situation could evolve as the year progresses.
Can Sands crack the Texas code in 2026?
Las Vegas Sands experienced a mixed year in 2025. Strong results from its operations in Singapore and Macau drove solid financial performance, helping the company end the year as the world’s most valuable gaming operator by market capitalisation, at about $44 billion.
However, the company’s two major US expansion ambitions did not pan out. Plans for a resort development on Long Island in New York were ultimately abandoned, while the proposed project outside Dallas moved forward without a casino element, at least for the time being.
In Texas, Sands undertook a broad push throughout the year. The company and its controlling shareholder, Miriam Adelson, significantly increased political spending in an effort to either advance casino legalisation or support candidates favourable to gaming expansion. Those efforts failed to deliver results: no legislative momentum emerged, and a Sands-backed candidate for the state Senate did not advance to a run-off election in November.
Even so, analysts remain optimistic about Texas, with many continuing to view the Dallas–Fort Worth area as one of the most attractive potential markets in the US. Home to more than 8 million residents, DFW is the nation’s fourth-largest metropolitan region, trailing only New York, Los Angeles and Chicago. Sands’ recent media messaging has focused on the idea of recreating the scale and impact of Singapore’s Marina Bay Sands in the US.
“Dallas is the only other place in the world that we believe can rival Marina Bay Sands in Singapore,” Sands senior vice president Andy Abboud told NBC5 in November.
“There isn’t a facility of this calibre even in Las Vegas,” he added. “People need to rethink what they imagine in Texas or Las Vegas and picture an entirely new level of entertainment and hospitality.”
Georgia on the industry’s mind
For years, Georgia has proven a difficult environment for gaming expansion. That has been particularly evident in the stalled progress of online sports betting. However, casino gaming entered the conversation last summer with the creation of the House Study Committee on Gaming in the State of Georgia. The committee was charged with evaluating the advantages and disadvantages of expanding gambling in the state, including the introduction of casinos. It held four hearings and heard testimony from 35 speakers.
Among those presenting in August was Josh Swissman, managing director at GMA Consulting. Speaking to iGB, Swissman said Georgia “meets all the criteria” as a potential market for casino development.
Georgia’s population stands at around 8.1 million, ranking it eighth nationwide, while the Atlanta metropolitan area is the sixth-largest in the US with approximately 6.3 million residents. The state also faces limited nearby casino competition, with Alabama, Tennessee and the Carolinas offering little in the way of gaming options. Florida, home to the Seminole Hard Rock casinos, represents the main competitive threat, though Swissman believes this may be manageable.
“Most of Florida’s casinos are concentrated in the southern part of the state, which requires significant travel,” Swissman said. “Georgia also has strong pockets of wealth and higher-income residents, so there are many factors that make it an appealing market for operators and developers.”
Assuming legislative and regulatory hurdles can be cleared, Swissman believes Georgia could sustain multiple casino licences and a mix of operators. During the committee hearings, several major gaming companies made presentations, including Wynn Resorts, Bally’s Corp, Boyd Gaming, and Gaming and Leisure Properties.
“I expect there could be several licences,” Swissman added, “with some suited to major operators and others designed as regional properties to serve drive-in customers.”
The race for a downtown Indy casino
Indianapolis has not traditionally been viewed as a casino market, but recent developments suggest that perception may be starting to shift.
In 2024, Full House Resorts, operator of the Rising Star Casino in Rising Sun, Indiana, sought approval to move the underperforming property to New Haven. The relocation plan required legislative backing, which ultimately was not granted.
Interest in restructuring Indiana’s casino landscape carried into 2025 with the passage of SEA 43. The law directed state regulators to commission a study to identify the two strongest candidates for a possible casino licence relocation. Spectrum Gaming Group delivered its 45-page analysis on 30 September.
According to the report, Spectrum evaluated four zip code areas with the highest levels of unmet gaming revenue potential to estimate how much a casino in each location could generate. The analysis concluded that the two areas with the greatest projected adjusted gross receipts were downtown Indianapolis and a region north of Fort Wayne.
Indianapolis, with a population of roughly 900,000, ranks as the 16th-largest city in the United States. The 15 cities above it are either located in states with casinos already serving dense urban populations (such as Pennsylvania, Ohio, Illinois and New York), limited to tribal gaming markets (including California, Florida, North Carolina and Arizona), or in states without casinos at all, such as Texas.
Several casino-related bills are now expected to be introduced during this year’s legislative session. Senate Bill 70 would permit Rising Star to relocate to either Allen County or Fort Wayne. Meanwhile, state Senator Aaron Freeman has indicated plans to propose separate legislation aimed at bringing a casino to Indianapolis. At present, the nearest casino to the city is Horseshoe Indianapolis, located about 30 miles away in Shelbyville.
