Resorts World – New York City’s First Full Casino Opens in Queens
Posted on: April 29, 2026, 08:44h.
Last updated on: April 29, 2026, 08:44h.
New York City’s first full-scale casino, complete with live table games, opened with a ceremonial dice roll on Tuesday, with legendary New York rapper Nas, an investor and partner in the project, in attendance.
The new casino is an expansion of Resorts World New York City, located in Ozone Park, Queens, right next to the historic Aqueduct Racetrack and close to JFK Airport.
The upgrade transforms Resorts World into the city’s first Las Vegas-style casino, with more than 200 table games, including blackjack, roulette, baccarat, and craps, as well as more than 2,500 slot-style video lottery terminals (VLTs).
Robert DeSalvio, president of Genting Americas East, which owns and operates the casino, said the venue had doubled its workforce, now employing more than 2,200 people, including 950 new table-game dealers.
$5.5 Billion Phase 2
And this is just phase one. Genting has pledged to invest $5.5 billion in turning Resorts World New York City into a destination integrated resort, featuring a new hotel, a 7,000-seat entertainment venue, more than 12 acres of public green space, expanded shopping and dining options, and additional gaming capacity.
The expansion will give the resort a total of 2,000 guest rooms, making it the largest hotel complex in New York City.
The site has long been home to the Aqueduct Racetrack, one of New York State’s major horse racing venues. In 2011, Genting won the right to build a racino at Aqueduct after state lawmakers allowed racetracks to host VGTs.
Thanks to its location within the most populous area of the US, it quickly became one of the highest-grossing slots venues in the nation.
Two More in Pipeline
In 2013, voters approved a constitutional amendment allowing up to seven full commercial casinos in the state. Between 2014 and 2015, four casinos were built in Upstate New York, while a 10-year moratorium blocked new gaming venues downstate. That gave the upstate casinos time to survive without competition from New York City.
In 2022, state lawmakers accelerated the timeline in the state budget. Resorts World was one of three projects granted licenses to operate full-scale casinos in 2025. Another is an $8.1 billion Hard Rock-branded resort next to Citi Field ballpark, proposed by Mets owner Steve Cohen.
Meanwhile, Bally’s plans a $4 billion venue at the Ferry Point golf course in the Bronx, though both are years away from completion.
The advent of casinos to New York City could spell trouble for Atlantic City by siphoning off a huge share of its core customer base – day-trippers from the New York metro area. This has led to increasing calls to allow casinos in North Jersey, such as at the Meadowlands or Monmouth Park racetracks, a move that would require approval via a constitutional amendment by New Jersey voters.
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