Las Vegas casino has one week to give away $1.6 million

Garance Limouzy July 10, 2024

Nevada law requires that when a casino closes, it must hand out the accumulated progressive jackpots. For the Mirage Casino in Las Vegas, this amounts to $1.6 million – that has to be given away in one week.

The Mirage Casino opened more than 30 years ago and is closing on July 17, to be converted into a Hard Rock Hotel & Casino. In 2023, the Mirage is estimated to have had around 1 million occupied room nights and generated $596 million in revenue and $169 million in earnings.

If the Nevada Gaming Control Board (NGCB) regulations require casinos to return the remaining jackpots, the board still considers the different circumstances of each casino. For instance, in May 2015, the Riviera Casino had to return the unclaimed jackpots to the players during a pre-closing giveaway, but the Tropicana, which closed in April 2024, was not required to do so by the NGCB. The law states: “The incremental amount of a progressive payoff schedule is an obligation to the licensee’s patrons, and it shall be the responsibility of the licensee, if he ceases operation of the progressive game or slot machine for any reason, including a transfer of ownership of the licensed gaming establishment, to arrange for satisfaction of that obligation in a manner approved by the chairman.”

$200,000 per day on the slots

Most of the $1.6 million will be available to be won on the slots. The Las Vegas casino will hand out $200,000 in winnings each day of the week, culminating with a prize of $250,000 on Friday. The remaining $400,000 will be awarded in winnings from table game jackpots.

The six-day promotion, known as The Mirage Progressive Final Cash Giveaway, will take place from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m. daily through Saturday, July 13, and will conclude with a final session on July 16.