BetMGM has announced that for the second consecutive year, the BetMGM Poker Championship will return to ARIA Resort & Casino Las Vegas. The tournament will take place between Friday, June 9th and Tuesday, June 13th. The final table will be livestreamed from the PokerGO Studio, and will carry a $2 million guarantee.
The BetMGM Poker Championship at ARIA is a $3,500 buy-in no limit Hold‘em tournament carrying a $2 million guarantee. The event will feature at least 100 qualifiers from BetMGM Poker markets in North America including New Jersey, Michigan, Pennsylvania and Ontario, Canada. Online qualifier events for the BetMGM Poker Championship at ARIA start Monday, May 1st.
Luke Staudenmaier, Director of Poker at BetMGM commented: “It’s great to bring BetMGM players back to Las Vegas during one of poker’s most exciting times of the year. For a second straight year, ARIA is delivering a Championship event and we are happy to continue to build on our relationship with MGM Resorts, while connecting BetMGM online players to the best poker rooms in the United States.”
What do the online qualifiers win?
Competitors that qualify online will win packages that include a $3,500 buy-in for the BetMGM Poker Championship as well as an $800 buy-in for the Mystery Bounty event, in addition to travel expenses and a stay for six nights at the ARIA Resort and Casino.
Sean McCormack, MGM Resorts Director of Poker Strategy said: “Partnering with BetMGM for another summer championship is a tremendous opportunity for us to offer poker players a one-of-a-kind experience. ARIA has doubled the guarantee from last year to $2 million, giving the competitors the chance to win one of our industry’s top prize pools.”
What is the US iGaming landscape like?
There are seven states in the USA in which iGaming is legalized, and thus online poker can be played. That is including Nevada, where online gaming in Nevada is not strictly legal – other than online poker which has an exception. Online gaming in Pennsylvania, online casino in New Jersey and online casino in Michigan have all been long-established as iGaming continues to blaze the way in growth figures across all commercial analysis.
Poker used to be a mammoth product across America until ‘Black Friday’ where millions of poker players across America woke up to see their favorite online poker sites closed down and unable to withdraw because the Department of Justice had seized the poker sites bank accounts. While a few places have reopened their online poker offerings with a license, they are few and far between in the USA.
The legalization landscape, although continuing to look strong on the sports betting front, with Texas sports betting in the legislative works. iGaming legalization has stalled in most places, including Indiana mobile gaming which was the analysts’ favorite for legalization before legislature resumed for 2023.