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Sin City, AKA Las Vegas, has been the world’s top gambling destination for the last half-century at least, but the tides seem to be shifting east to Asia. Macau, an antonymous region of China, has been investing heavily into a gambling and tourist industry, since 2002. That industry today brings in more than Las Vegas in terms of gambling revenue, by over 3 times. With a rising middle and business class in Asia mainly living in countries where gambling is banned, the rise of Macau has been exponential over the last decade. Macau was long since known as the Las Vegas of Asia, but now has dwarfed its American counterpart.

According to statistics and facts from Casinosites, Macau, though geographically smaller (only 1/10th in size compared to Vegas), packs quite the punch into their 29.5 square kilometres. Macau sees annual visitor volumes over 30 million per year and 2/3rd are from China. That’s 20 million of China’s business elite pouring vast amounts of dollars and Yuan into Macau’s gaming industry.

• Rules at Macau's casinos have mellowed considerably since the arrival of American casinos to the territory. The likes of the Wynn and The Venetian have become entertainment palaces, rather than just gambling dens, relaxing their rules and their dress codes in the process. In general, unless you are planning to visit the high roller tables, the rules are as relaxed as the dress code.
• Macau is China’s answer to Las Vegas. But the former Portuguese colony has long surpassed the City of Lights as the world’s casino capital, with revenue from gambling receipts exceeding the.

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Gambling Revenues

As mentioned, Macau generates 3 times the gambling revenue as Vegas with gross gaming revenue of $28 billion annually, compared to $6.4 billion generated by Vegas. Vegas does, however, make more in terms of food, drinks and entertainment, Nonetheless, Macau’s 12.12 billion dollars in annual city revenue is not too far behind.

Facilities

Las Vegas has 135 casinos compared to 49 in Macau. The primary difference is that, unlike Vegas, no smaller casinos exist, and the 49 Macau casinos are among the biggest in the world. Macau does have more hotels and nearly twice as many guest rooms, at 30,000 compared to Vegas - just short of 17,000 rooms.

Taxes & Player Behavior

If you were an international player you would be subject to a 30% holdings tax on winnings in Las Vegas. If you were American you would be taxed between 25 and 30%. Macau has no tax on winnings and thus has created a much more serious gambling environment. Unlike Vegas casinos, the casinos in Macau are filled with more serious gamblers and players who drink and party far less. Macau also has earned a reputation of being a cards-and-table-game mecca, with far more gaming tables and far less slot machines than Las Vegas. This, in turn, has attracted the very high end, high rollers looking to gamble with no distractions. The shopping and restaurant culture in Macau is 5 stars and far more refined with world-class chefs, compared to the fast food, party and entertainment based experience of Vegas.

Celebrity Endorsements

A lot of what made Vegas were the celebrity endorsements during its rise to becoming the pop cultural iconic place it is today. From Sinatra to Celine Dion, Vegas has hosted and been endorsed by the biggest celebrities ever. Macau has recently become the playground of the celebrity world, with frequent visits by David Beckham, Paris Hilton, Stephan Baldwon and even Rihanna. Furthermore, Leonardo Dicaprio, Robert DeNiro and Martin Scorsese launched a 3.2-billion-dollar casino in Macau in 2015.

With bigger revenues, supersized facilities, a more serious and refined culture with celebrity endorsements to match, Macau is arguably the new capital of gambling on the planet Earth. To see more facts on how Macau stacks up against Las Vegas check out these interesting facts and statistics from Casinosites.

Macau has been getting a lot of attention due to crime in connection with casino operations and despite additional measures, taken by law enforcement, the situation is only getting worse. To attest to that, there has been another case which left The Plaza Macao’s employees terrified and in need of medical attention.

Macau Casino News Today

What led to their state were two masked individuals, armed with pepper spray who committed an act of robbery, taking off with chips approximately worth $394,900. Even though at the moment, there is no news about the two culprits being caught or their identity revealed, the fact remains that they’ve taken a bold move by going off with chips since trying to cash them out will set off the alarm and draw unwanted attention their way.

Investigation in Progress

Early in the morning of May 25, a masked duo entered The Plaza Macau premises, inflicting injuries to a security guard and a dealer. Next, they’ve moved onto the chips, stashing them from the high-limit gaming lounge. After that, they’ve left the scene of the crime in a taxi, and according to law enforcement, there hasn’t been a significant development in the investigation.

The Plaza Macau is listed among five Sands China Limited venues in Macau, located in the Four Seasons Macao hotel. Within its 108,000 sq ft casino, the venue includes 180 slot machines as well as 140 gaming tables and it is one of the largest casino in the Asian Sin City.

In relation to the heist, Sands China Limited, a subsidiary of prominent casino and resort company, gave a statement elaborating that the case in question is being handled by the local law enforcement. Also, according to the statement, the authorities will have their full support during the investigation.

The employees who suffered the unfortunate incident have been given proper medical care and the company is keeping tabs on their state. For the company, the safety of their staff is very important and they don’t take it very lightly.

Prior Incidents

Macau Casino Guide

It’s been revealed that before the pepper spray heist, there has been another alarming incident at the Plaza Macao. In fact, it happened just recently, on May 18, involving 4 Chinese nationals being stabbed. In the end, there was one fatal outcome with local authorities denying any connection to gambling despite being placed at the footbridge, connecting the Plaza Macao with Sands Cotai Central integrated casino resort.

Macau Casino Revenue News

Before the most recent act of crime, casino representatives held a meeting, trying to figure out the way how to shorten reaction time in situations alike. In addition to casino officials, the local Gaming Inspection and the police were present at this gathering.

However, due to the newest robbery, it appears that there is a lot of work to be done in order to stop similar criminal advancements. Even though there is no outright logic in stealing chips since it’ll prove to be hard dispensing them with profits and not being detected while doing so, the pair responsible for the theft might have other agenda with more complex planning. On the other hand, it doesn’t appear so.