Atlantic Club to Close Following Tropicana and Caesars Purchase
On Friday, it was revealed that the Atlantic Club in Atlantic City, New Jersey, once in line to be purchased by PokerStars, will close on January 13. According to the Associated Press, “Two companies with casinos in Atlantic City, Tropicana Entertainment and Caesars Entertainment, will pay a combined $23.4 million for the business. According to bankruptcy filings made Friday afternoon, Tropicana will take the 1,641 slot machines and 48 table games for $8.4 million, while Caesars will get the property and its more than 800 hotel rooms for $15 million.”
The deal between PokerStars and the Atlantic Club was officially deemed dead in mid-May, in part following the alleged involvement of PokerStars founder Isai Scheinberg, one of 11 individuals indicted on Black Friday. At the time, NJ.com explained, “In a sworn statement, Eric Matejevich, Atlantic Club’s Chief Financial Officer, claims he received a phone call from Scheinberg in early October that opened discussions about a sale. Matejevich said he ‘understood’ Scheinberg to be a principal in the company.”
The PokerStars deal was worth $15 million.
The same site continued, “Matejevich said in his statement he had further discussions with Scheinberg after their initial talk in October. And on April 26 – days before the Atlantic Club announced it had terminated its purchase agreement – Scheinberg called Matejevich on his cell phone, according to the statement. Scheinberg said ‘his advisers had reported to him that they had a ‘90% chance’ of receiving’ a casino license.” As we know now, this month, New Jersey officials suspended their review of PokerStars’ online gaming license for two years.
With the closure of the Atlantic Club and transferring of its assets to other casinos, the number of active casinos in Atlantic City will drop from 12 to 11. The Associated Press explained what might become of the building: “The court filings seem to indicate that Caesars may utilize the hotel portion of the property as a non-casino hotel.” However, according to a separate AP report, “Caesars spokesman Gary Thompson said the company has no plans to operate the hotel portion of the complex.”
The property was opened as the Golden Nugget in 1980 and was also known as the Atlantic City Hilton.
Legalized online gambling began in New Jersey last month in order to help revitalize Atlantic City’s struggling casinos. Six online poker rooms have opened for business, including Borgata Poker, WSOP.com, PartyPoker, 888, and Betfair. Check out PocketFives’ New Jersey poker community for the latest news from the Garden State.
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