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Philip Conneller

In Philip Conneller’s eight years with Casino.org, he has covered the gaming industry from Las Vegas to Macau and everything in between. He currently focuses his coverage on gaming law, white-collar crime, global money laundering, tribal gaming, politics, and regulation.

Philip was the original features editor for poker’s Bluff Magazine and editor for Bluff Europe, which he helped launch. His writing has also been featured in ESPN, Forbes, Time Out, The Sun, and The Daily Star, as well as iGaming Business, eGaming Review, and numerous other industry news and tech websites.

His news stories for Casino.org/news have been linked by The Washington Post, The Daily Mail, People Magazine, and Jimmy Fallon's Tonight Show, among many others.

Philip once won $20,000 with 7-2 off-suit. He has been reprimanded for unwittingly playing Elton John’s piano on two separate occasions on both sides of the Atlantic.

He became a writer because he is a lousy pianist.

Philip lives outside London with his wife and children, where he spends his time agonizing about Arsenal FC.

Contact Philip at philip.conneller@casino.org.

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Senior Reporter

Expert since 2018

4174 stories by Philip Conneller

Pace-O-Matic Can’t Get Kansas Courts to Say ‘Dragon’s Ascent’ is Legit
January 6, 2025

Pace-O-Matic Can’t Get Kansas Courts to Say ‘Dragon’s Ascent’ is Legit

Gaming machine manufacturer Pace-O-Matic’s efforts to have its dragon-shooting game “Dragon’s Ascent” declared a contest of skill by the Kansas Supreme Court has been shot down in flames. Dragon’s Ascent, currently widely available in Kansas...

Written by Philip Conneller
Ex-Malta Ministers Face Charges for Links to Casino Owner Accused in Journalist Murder
January 6, 2025

Ex-Malta Ministers Face Charges for Links to Casino Owner Accused in Journalist Murder

Two former high-level Maltese politicians should be charged over their association with 17 Black, a company controlled by casino owner and accused murderer Yorgen Fenech, a criminal inquiry has concluded. Magistrate Charmaine Galea presented her...

Written by Philip Conneller
Bally’s AC Sex Attacker Could See 42-Year Sentence Slashed
January 6, 2025

Bally’s AC Sex Attacker Could See 42-Year Sentence Slashed

A New York man whose sexual assault of a Bally’s Atlantic City housekeeper hastened the enactment of legislation that mandated wearable panic buttons for New Jersey hotel workers could see his sentence reduced. In April 2022, a...

Written by Philip Conneller
Montana Man Sentenced to 140 Years for Four Aces Double Murder
January 5, 2025

Montana Man Sentenced to 140 Years for Four Aces Double Murder

A Montana man was sentenced to 140 years in prison Friday for brazenly shooting his wife and a bartender to death in 2023 at the Four Aces Bar, a cardroom and slots tavern in the...

Written by Philip Conneller
Ex Pace-O-Matic Compliance Chief Charged with Racketeering
January 5, 2025

Ex Pace-O-Matic Compliance Chief Charged with Racketeering

A former national compliance director for Georgia-based skill games manufacturer Pace-O-Matic is facing racketeering charges for operating “an illegal scam to obtain large sums of money that were derived from … illegal gambling activities,” according...

Written by Philip Conneller
Cow Creek Coalition Can’t Block Coquille Tribe’s Medford Casino – Yet
January 4, 2025

Cow Creek Coalition Can’t Block Coquille Tribe’s Medford Casino – Yet

A coalition of tribal operators from Oregon and Northern California have failed to obtain a temporary restraining order against the US interior Department (DOI) that aimed to block the final approval of a contentious tribal...

Written by Philip Conneller
DraftKings Settles ‘Corporate Espionage’ Lawsuit Vs. Former Exec
January 3, 2025

DraftKings Settles ‘Corporate Espionage’ Lawsuit Vs. Former Exec

DraftKings has settled a legal spat with its former head of VIP, Michael Hermalyn, whom the operator accused of “corporate espionage” after the executive jumped ship to its rival, Fanatics. The terms of the settlement...

Written by Philip Conneller
FBI Boston Ditches Organized Crime Squad as Mafia Loses Bite
January 3, 2025

FBI Boston Ditches Organized Crime Squad as Mafia Loses Bite

The FBI’s Boston arm has quietly disbanded its organized crime office. It’s a testament to the current toothlessness of the New England Mafia, which once controlled illegal gambling, loansharking, and extortion rackets throughout Massachusetts, Rhode...

Written by Philip Conneller
Poker Player Charged with Murder Posted Bizarre Videos Before Killing
January 2, 2025

Poker Player Charged with Murder Posted Bizarre Videos Before Killing

Disturbing videos posted to Facebook by Michigan poker player Craig Michael Bergeron shortly before he allegedly shot an apparent stranger dead suggest the accused was suffering from a mental illness and was spiraling out of...

Written by Philip Conneller
California Tribes Sue Cardrooms Over ‘Illegal House-Banked’ Games
January 2, 2025

California Tribes Sue Cardrooms Over ‘Illegal House-Banked’ Games

A lawsuit filed by a coalition of California tribal operators accuses the cardroom industry of offering illegal gambling in violation of the state constitution and the California Penal Code. The suit, filed January 1 in...

Written by Philip Conneller