Yokohama Likely to Sit Out Japan’s 2027 Casino Bidding Round

Yokohama is unlikely to participate in Japan’s 2027 application window for two remaining casino licenses, as none of the seven candidates seeking to become the city’s next mayor have signed on to back an integrated resort (IR) development. Yokohama’s Chinatown is pictured in a file photograph taken on May 19, 2024. Yokohama’s next mayor will likely oppose any effort to bid on a casino development. (Image: Shutterstock) Yokohama is Japan’s second-most-populated city behind Tokyo. Located roughly 20 miles south of the capital, the city is widely viewed as key to the success of Japan’s second IR bidding round, particularly in attracting major global gaming firms such as Las Vegas Sands, Wynn Resorts, Caesars Entertainment, Genting, and Melco Resorts. At this juncture, however, the odds appear long that Yokohama will throw its name in the hat and bid for a casino. Seven candidates are vying to become the next mayor of Yokohama, including former Mayor Takeharu Yamanaka, who resigned in September but has since decided to mount a campaign to retake the office, and none want an IR. Along with Yamanaka, the candidates are civic group leader Sachiko Fujikawa, 51, former lawmaker Kazuma Nakatani, 43, lawyer Atsumi Harasawa, 59, corporate executive Atsushi Fukuyama, 37, architect Riken Yamamoto, 81, and Yuka Asaka, 46, deputy leader of the Japanese Communist Party’s Kanagawa prefectural branch. Candidates Oppose IR The seven candidates running for Yokohama mayor have voiced opposition to an IR. Nakatani is perhaps the most outspoken adversary of gambling, making the IR issue one of his six campaign “zeros.” Nakatani is pledging support for zero costs for childbirth, zero childcare fees for families starting with a second child, zero school lunch costs, zero costs for elderly care, zero harassment in the workplace, and a Yokohama with “zero casinos.” Fujikawa previously took part in anti-IR campaigning and maintains her ongoing opposition to a casino in the city. Yamamoto has also rejected an IR, with the architect saying he has a better idea for the Yamashita Pier that includes building “machiyas,” or traditional Japanese wooden townhouses. Harasawa is on record saying he will not embrace an IR. Fukuyama and Asaka are on record saying an IR doesn’t align with their policy goals. And Yamanaka was responsible for withdrawing Yokohama’s IR candidacy upon taking office in 2021. Yokohama’s special election is scheduled for Oct. 18. MGM Monopoly Japan authorized up to three IR destinations in 2018. To date, only one license has been granted, with MGM Resorts a co-developer of MGM Osaka, a JPY1.51 trillion (US$9.5 billion) venture on Yumeshima Island. With Yokohama likely on the sidelines, it’s unclear if additional gaming companies will participate in Japan’s second IR bidding window. Currently, only Bally’s Corporation and Galaxy Entertainment Group have expressed interest. The bidding window is slated to start in May 2027 and run through November. The post Yokohama Likely to Sit Out Japan’s 2027 Casino Bidding Round appeared first on Casino.org.