Wynn Resorts expects two competitors to emerge in the United Arab Emirates’ gaming market in the coming years, with the market projected to generate $3 billion to $5 billion in gross gaming revenue, according to the company’s chief executive.
Despite this anticipated competition, Wynn is positioning itself to capture significant market share when its $3.9 billion Wynn Al Marjan resort opens in early 2027.
“We were factoring in two incremental competitors and a market that is $3 billion to $5 billion of GGR (gross gaming revenue). We always tend to operate at a fair share premium,” Craig Billings, CEO of Wynn Resorts, said during a conference call with analysts following the company’s third quarter 2025 results. “With no announced competition that we’re aware of in the (UAE) market thus far, there probably is some conservatism in those estimates.”
The Wynn Al Marjan property, located in Ras Al Khaimah, represents a joint venture between Wynn Resorts and RAK Holding. It is the first property in the UAE licensed to operate as an integrated gaming resort.
Wynn Resorts was awarded the first commercial gaming (land-based casino) license in the UAE in October 2024 by the General Commercial Gaming Regulatory Authority (GCGRA). MGM Resorts International publicly stated that it has submitted an application for a UAE casino license, making it the second known operator to engage in the process.
Jim Murren, executive chairman of GCGRA, indicated during a Skift summit that he expected up to four integrated resorts to be established in the UAE in the coming years.
Billings emphasized the UAE’s market fundamentals, citing “a tremendous amount of airlift, a very robust locals market, a very, very high GDP per capita” as key factors in the company’s market size assessment. He noted the geographic advantages of the location, stating that Wynn Al Marjan is approximately 50 minutes from Dubai with excellent road infrastructure connecting the property to major population centers.
The company has already begun targeted marketing efforts for the project. Billings explained that one-to-one marketing and player engagement have been ongoing, with mass marketing campaigns planned to intensify as 2026 progresses and the property approaches its opening date.
Wynn Resorts described the UAE as “one of the most exciting new markets for integrated resort development in decades” in its third quarter results. The company projects the Al Marjan Island property will add $345 million in EBITDAR to its existing operations. During the third quarter of 2025, Wynn contributed $93.9 million in cash to the 40 percent-owned joint venture, bringing its total investment in the project to $835 million.
