Rivers Casino Portsmouth Preps to Fend Off Norfolk Competition With Hotel, New GM
Posted on: September 24, 2025, 06:48h.
Last updated on: September 24, 2025, 09:35h.
- Rivers Casino Portsmouth is readying to defend its Hampton Roads stronghold on casino gambling
- A temporary casino will open in nearby Norfolk in September
- Rivers Portsmouth is constructing its first on-site hotel
Rivers Casino Portsmouth will soon lose its monopoly on casino gambling in Virginia’s Hampton Roads when The Interim Gaming Hall in Norfolk opens this fall.
In preparation for the nearby competition, Rivers Portsmouth, owned and operated by Chicago-based Rush Street Gaming, announced in May the construction of a 106-key hotel with 32 suites. Described as an “upscale” lodging facility, the property, called The Landing Hotel, will offer casino gamblers on-site accommodations.
The Landing is Rush’s casino hotel brand, with other Landing Hotels located at Rivers Casino Pittsburgh and Rivers Casino Schenectady in New York.
The Landing at Rivers Casino Portsmouth is a $65 million investment. It comes more than two years after the Hampton Roads casino opened next to Tidewater Community College’s Portsmouth Campus in January 2023. Rivers was the first permanent casino in Virginia.
Rivers Casino Portsmouth has been a winning bet for Rush Street Gaming. The casino generated $250 million in gross gaming revenue in 2023. That number grew to $309 million last year. GGR has only further grown this year.
Norfolk Forthcoming
Portsmouth and Norfolk were two of the five cities Virginia lawmakers designated for casino developments through legislation passed in 2020. Both cities formally authorized their respective casino projects through local ballot referendums during the November 2020 election.
Norfolk’s casino, however, was persistently delayed because of lawsuits, easement challenges, and funding concerns. Boyd Gaming stepped in last year to rescue the Harbor Park project.
Construction on the $750 million resort, which will feature a 200-room hotel and similarly sized casino as Rivers Portsmouth, is underway. Boyd will open a temporary casino adjacent to the Harbor Park baseball stadium in November.
New General Manager
Gaming veteran Roy Corby helped Rush Street Gaming open Rivers Casino Portsmouth. He oversaw its first two years in operation until he took a job with the Koi Nation in California in June to help the tribe open an integrated resort casino in Sonoma County.
Corby is working with Chickasaw Nation’s Global Gaming Solutions in securing federal approval for the project known as the Shiloh Casino & Resort. The Chickasaw, a large gaming tribe based in Oklahoma, is helping the Koi Nation pursue its tribal casino in Northern California.
This week, Rush named Corby’s successor in Antonio Perez Jr. He’s crisscrossing paths with Corby, as Perez arrives in Virginia from California, where he previously served as general manager of Rolling Hills Casino Resort. Rollings Hills, owned and operated by the Paskenta Band of Nomlaki Indians, is in Tehama County about 100 miles north of Sacramento.
We’re excited to welcome Antonio to our growing family of destination casinos,” said Tim Drehkoff, CEO of Rush Street Gaming. “His extensive background in team development, guest experience, and operations — including management of two hotels — makes him an excellent choice to lead our Virginia property.”
Before Rolling Hills, Perez worked at Penn Entertainment at its regional casino properties in West Virginia, Maine, Missouri, and Mississippi. Perez’s career in the gaming industry began as a table game dealer and slot attendant in West Virginia.
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