Last Wednesday, PPE Casino Resorts Petersburg LLC became the fifth approved casino facility operator in Virginia. The Virginia Lottery Board unanimously approved its application for licensure. PPE Casino Resorts Petersburg LLC plans to open a casino near the intersection of Interstate 95 and Wagner Road.

This comes after a comprehensive review of application materials submitted by PPE Casino Resorts Petersburg LLC and an extensive background investigation by the Virginia Lottery. Under legislation passed by the General Assembly in 2020, the Virginia Lottery licenses and regulates casinos and sports betting in the Commonwealth.

The planned casino in Petersburg will join four other approved casinos in the Commonwealth: in Bristol, Danville, Norfolk, and Portsmouth.

The Virginia Lottery was created in a 1987 referendum by Virginia voters. Under legislation passed by the Virginia General Assembly in 2020, the Lottery also assumed regulatory oversight of sports wagering and casino gaming in the Commonwealth. While proceeds from traditional games offered by the Lottery support a variety of K-12 programs, the taxes generated by sports wagering and casino gaming will benefit other priorities of the Commonwealth as determined by the General Assembly.

The Nevada Gaming Control Board has filed a civil enforcement action in the District Court for Carson City against BLOCKRATIZE INC. d/b/a POLYMARKET; QCX LLC d/b/a POLYMARKET US; and ADVENTURE ONE QSS INC. d/b/a POLYMARKET. In its complaint, the Board asked the court for a declaration and injunction to stop Polymarket from offering unlicensed wagering in violation of Nevada law.

Polymarket operates a derivatives exchange and prediction market where it offers event contracts for sale. These products are offered for sale on Polymarket’s mobile app and are made available to people in Nevada. The Board considers offering sports event contracts, or certain other events contracts, to constitute wagering activity under NRS 463.0193 and 463.01962 and, therefore, entities offering such event contracts must be licensed.

The Board has deemed Polymarket’s operations to be unlawful in Nevada and in violation of NRS 463.160, NRS 463.350, NRS 465.086, and NRS 465.092.

Nevada’s public policy, as expressed by the Legislature, is that the gaming industry is vitally important to the economy of the state and the general welfare of the inhabitants and therefore must be licensed, controlled, and assisted to protect the public health, safety, morals, good order, and general welfare of the inhabitants of the State.