Bill Keena
Cliff Ehrlich Joins Rush Street Gaming as COO

Rush Street Gaming announced that casino and hospitality veteran Cliff Ehrlich has joined the company as chief operating officer.
Ehrlich assumes the role of Rush Street COO from Bill Keena, a longtime company and industry leader, who plans to retire later this year.
“I’ve admired Rush Street’s strong leadership and steady expansion over the past two decades. I’m thrilled to join this dynamic organization and look forward to contributing to the company’s ongoing success,” said Ehrlich.
Ehrlich’s career began in marketing at the Catskills’ Pines Resort Hotel in the 80s and transitioned in the 90s to casino development and operations. In 1996, he became co-owner of the Monticello Raceway and helped recruit the Oneida Indian Nation to build a casino on the property. Following an initial public offering, Ehrlich led Monticello Casino & Raceway as president, chief operating officer and general manager until 2013.
After consulting with Mohegan Sun regarding Upstate New York development opportunities, in 2015, Ehrlich joined The Downs Racetrack & Casino in Albuquerque, serving as general manager and chief operating officer. He later ran two casinos for The Navajo Nation — Northern Edge and Flowing Water. Since 2022, Ehrlich has been Navajo Nation Gaming Enterprise’s chief operating officer, with oversight of four casinos, a resort destination hotel, travel plaza and food & beverage manufacturing.
“Cliff’s ground-up casino development experience, deep operations background and team leadership ensure that all five Rivers Casino properties remain in great hands. He will continue the strong forward momentum established by Bill Keena, for whom we wish the very best in retirement,” said Tim Drehkoff, CEO of Rush Street Gaming.
Bill Keena
Rush Street Gaming Promotes Two Employees to COO and CFO

Rush Street Gaming has promoted Bill Keena and Marc Arndt as Chief Operating Officer and Chief Financial Officer, respectively.
“Bill Keena and Marc Arndt have been part of the Rush Street family for over a decade. Their unique combination of institutional history, operational expertise and financial acumen made them the ideal choices for COO and CFO. We’re delighted they’ve accepted these exciting new roles,” Tim Drehkoff, CEO of Rush Street Gaming, said.
Keena most recently served for three-plus years as general manager of Rivers Casino Pittsburgh, Western Pennsylvania’s market-leading casino. Under Keena’s leadership, Rivers Casino Pittsburgh set new performance precedents and successfully navigated pandemic shutdowns amid fluid health and safety measures. Rivers Casino Pittsburgh will open its new hotel later this year.
Keena’s winning track record for Rush Street began in 2011 when the company opened Rivers Casino in Des Plaines with Keena as general manager. The Chicago-area venue quickly became Illinois’ top-performing casino and has been so ever since. Rivers Casino Des Plaines just completed an $87 million expansion that added 78,000 square feet of gaming, event space, and other amenities.
Between his appointments as the top local executive for Rivers Casino in various markets, Keena served Rush Street Gaming as an enterprise-wide casino industry consultant.
Keena began his gaming career in 1988, after graduating from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. He joined Harrah’s finance department, where his responsibilities grew to include casino and hotel oversight as general manager of Harrah’s Laughlin, Nevada, and Harrah’s St. Louis, Missouri. Thereafter, he was promoted to regional president for Harrah’s, simultaneously overseeing four full-service casinos and resorts, two in Missouri and two in Iowa.
“Rush Street Gaming has been exemplary in developing a positive Team Member culture, strong community engagements and superior guest experiences. I’m looking forward to working alongside our tremendously talented and dedicated teams to continue their great momentum,” Keena said.
Arndt was the first Team Member to join Rivers Casino in Des Plaines prior to the property’s ribbon-cutting in 2011. He was instrumental in launching that operation and was closely involved in hiring key Team Members, contract negotiations and project management.
Today, Arndt oversees and manages the finance functions across all gaming operations including Rush Street’s land-based casinos and their affiliated entities. He has extensive experience in financial management, business leadership and corporate strategy.
Prior to joining Rush Street, Arndt was the CFO of Bethesda Home, a regional acute care nursing and rehabilitation center. Earlier, he was a director with Bridge Finance Group and focused on structuring, closing and managing senior secured debt, mezzanine debt and preferred equity.
“I’m excited about Rush Street’s tremendous growth over the past decade and proud of the team’s many accomplishments. We have strong and thoughtful leadership across the entire enterprise. I’m looking forward to continued collaboration and even more great things ahead,” Arndt said.
The appointments of Keena and Arndt are subject to approvals from jurisdictional gaming boards.
Powered by WPeMatico
-
Baltics7 days ago
Number of Estonians Using Gambling Self-exclusion Services Rises by Nearly 36% in Five Years
-
Asia7 days ago
KONAMI GROUP CORPORATION Named “Most Honored Company” in the Gaming Sector in Extel’s “2025 Japan Executive Team” Survey
-
BetUS7 days ago
MGCB Issues Cease-and-Desist Order to BetUS
-
GAT Cartagena 20257 days ago
Win Systems Celebrates Successful Participation at GAT Cartagena 2025
-
Giorgia Kasat7 days ago
Reals Appoints Giorgia Kasat as New Head of HR, Strengthening Organizational Strategy in the Betting Industry
-
Bitstarz6 days ago
BitStarz Review 2025: 5 BTC Bonuses, 180 Free Spins Welcome Offer & Bonus Codes
-
Latest News7 days ago
Week 19/2025 slot games releases
-
Baltics4 days ago
HIPTHER Confirms Exciting Networking Venues and Stage Themes for MARE BALTICUM Gaming & TECH Summit 2025