Alex Dixon Steps Down as CEO of Resorts World, Carlos Castro Steps Up

By Scott Roeben, on May 08 2025
3 min read 5 comments
Las Vegas

A source familiar with the ongoing rodeo of WTF that is Resorts World tells us Alex Dixon is out as the beleaguered resort’s CEO.

Alex Dixon took the role in January 2025. Resorts World has made no official announcement of the move.

We also hear Resorts World’s COO and CFO, Carlos Castro, will step into the CEO role. Dixon is expected to stay on in a consulting capacity, which, in casino industry terms, means he’s was “quiet fired.”

If you like drama, Resorts World has been involved in more than its fair share.

We will not bore you with a recap of the recent history of Resorts World. Let’s just say it has not involved smooth sailing.

A scandal related to anti-money laundering regulations brought down the resort’s former president, Scott Sibella.

Since then, Resorts World has enlisted the help of high-profile executives to help Resorts World get its shit together. A Board of Directors is led by former MGM Resorts executive Jim Murren, along with former Nevada Governor Brian Sandoval.

Don’t get us started about the hilarity of Jim Murren overseeing a resort following an anti-money laundering kerfuffle when he was Scott Sibella’s boss at MGM Resorts.

The Board also includes A.G. Burnett, a former gaming regulator who we understand helped get Resorts World’s kerfuffle-related fine reduced, bigtime.

Gaming regulators called the Resorts World Boar of Directors a “dream team.” That’s because Nevada gaming regulators “aren’t very good at what they do.”

Anyway, it turns out we did sort of bore you with a recap of the recent history of Resorts World.

We trust Mr. Murren was the reason for Dixon’s “stepping down.” Dixon didn’t appear a great fit to helm a massive Strip casino.

Dixon’s most recent gig was CEO of Q Casino & Resort and the Dubuque Racing Association in Iowa.

All due respect to Iowa, but seriously?

Everyone we’ve talked to says Dixon is well-liked, so it doesn’t sound like the issues were personality-related, other than some rumblings about him butting heads with Carlos Castro occasionally. (Castro reportedly won.)

The most visible aspect of Dixon’s short run as CEO was when he was dragged into a messy fail related to a MrBeast experience the resort forgot to provide.

If the “quiet firing” scenario sounds familiar, you may want to read more about Mark Tricano at Fontainebleau. Maurice Wooden was named resort president, and the official statement said Tricano would stay on at the resort, reporting to Maurice Wooden. Which means they have a job until they can find another one, and the resort gets to sidestep an announcement someone was fired, because that might lead a layperson to think there’s chaos afoot.

Carlos Castro is described to us as “top notch.”

He joined Resorts World in Feb. 2025 as Chief Operating Officer (COO) and Chief Financial Officer (CFO) as part of a “strategic leadership restructuring,” or as the kids call it, “cleaning house after having its ass whooped by Gaming.”

Castro has a lot of experience in hospitality finance and operations, having held senior leadership positions at Hilton Hotels Corporation, Caesars Entertainment and (wait for it) MGM Resorts. He was CFO at Aria.

If you’re a fan of MGM Resorts, you’re likely to love the “new” Resorts World culture and ethos and service levels.

We asked ChatGPT what it took from the latest Resorts World executive shake-up: “The storytelling phase is over. The spreadsheets are in charge now.”

The ongoing suspicion is Jim Murren was brought on to help Resorts World get sold, although, it’s unclear who might buy.

We’ll pass along any further information as it becomes available, probably in the form of a statement from Resorts World saying Dixon wanted to spend more time with his family or something. And he should. Leaving a lucrative job to jump into the Resorts World quagmire is probably very stressful.

Update (5/8/25): Following the publication of our story, Resorts World confirmed: “Alex Dixon will be moving into a new role as senior advisor to the Board of Directors to drive enterprise projects and build strategic partnerships. We are confident that this will be a seamless transition with industry veteran and respected long-time hospitality leader Carlos Castro stepping into the President and Chief Financial Officer role. Carlos has already been making major contributions to the property, attracting top area talent in the areas of compliance, international marketing, and food and beverage. Resorts World Las Vegas leadership knows our best days are around the corner, and this is the next phase in our evolution.”

Update (5/8/25): We got our hands on a “confidential” internal memo from Jim Murren to the Resorts World management team.

The fact casino executives still think there’s such a thing as a confidential memo, despite our having shared confidential memos for more than a decade, is adorable.

In the memo, Murren shares the resort’s new Senior V.P. of Food and Beverage and Hospitality Development, Josef Wagner. He comes from (wait for it, again) MGM Resorts.

Jennifer Roberts is the company’s Chief Compliance Officer. She joined Resorts World in April 2025.