From Smoke-Filled Poker Rooms to Global Gaming Powerhouse: The Enduring Legacy and Reinvention of the Bally’s Brand

Las Vegas is a city built on reinvention. It thrives on nostalgia, spectacle, and bold bets that transform the desert into a playground for dreamers and gamblers alike. Few names echo through the annals of casino lore like Bally’s, a brand that has journeyed from the heart of the Strip to the heights of international online gaming. Its evolution is not simply a tale of neon and dice; it’s a reflection of how the gaming industry has adapted to decades of change, technological upheaval, and the restless pursuit of the next big win.

The roots of the Bally name in Las Vegas go back to 1986 when Bally Manufacturing, primarily known for its pinball machines and slot technology, acquired the original MGM Grand Hotel and Casino, a palatial property on the south end of the Strip. That acquisition marked the company’s entry into the Las Vegas resort business and saw the property renamed Bally’s Las Vegas. In doing so, the company embedded itself into the soul of the city, becoming a staple of the Strip for generations of visitors.

The resort, built originally in 1973 as the largest hotel in the world under the MGM banner, had already suffered a notorious tragedy—the 1980 fire that killed 85 people and shook the city’s sense of security. After a painstaking renovation, it reopened with a renewed focus on safety and luxury, and under Bally’s stewardship, it leaned into an old-school Vegas glamour that contrasted with the ever-evolving megaresorts sprouting around it. With its towering façade and elegant interiors, Bally’s Las Vegas became an institution for more traditional gaming and entertainment, famously hosting the long-running revue Jubilee! and showcasing the flair of vintage Las Vegas even as newer, flashier properties emerged around it.

But time doesn’t stand still in Las Vegas. Bally’s was eventually absorbed into Caesars Entertainment, and in 2022, the company announced that the property would be reborn under a new—yet very familiar—name: Horseshoe Las Vegas. The rebrand was more than cosmetic. It was a homage to the golden era of poker, a deliberate nod to Binion’s Horseshoe, the downtown casino where poker legend Benny Binion established the World Series of Poker in 1970. That dusty downtown venue was small and smoky but carved out a permanent legacy in gaming by embracing the poker community and elevating the game into a global phenomenon.

By rebranding Bally’s as Horseshoe Las Vegas, Caesars tapped into that rich history. The new Horseshoe wasn’t just another themed resort—it was a revival of poker’s spiritual home on the Strip. The interiors were redesigned with classic Vegas materials—deep leathers, gold trims, and dark woods. Poker once again took center stage, with a modern, sprawling poker room reimagined to accommodate both daily grinders and WSOP hopefuls. The casino brought back iconic memorabilia, including the display of $10,000 bills once housed at Binion’s, a staple symbol of poker’s high-stakes mystique.

In 2022 and 2023, the World Series of Poker made its grand return to the Strip, hosted at the newly minted Horseshoe and neighboring Paris Las Vegas. This marked a full-circle moment for the WSOP, a brand that had grown far beyond its modest downtown origins. Thousands of players filled the vast convention halls, competing for millions and writing new chapters in a saga that began more than five decades ago. The return to a Horseshoe-branded venue wasn’t just poetic—it was strategic. It blended nostalgia with modernization, authenticity with spectacle, and grounded the WSOP in a location befitting its global prestige.

While the Vegas-side of the Bally’s name was being reimagined, a parallel transformation was occurring behind the scenes—one driven not by cards and chips, but by data, technology, and international ambition. Bally’s Corporation, an entirely separate entity from the Las Vegas property by that point, had begun its own journey toward becoming a digital gaming powerhouse. Originally operating as Twin River Worldwide Holdings, the company was a modest regional casino operator based in Rhode Island. But under the vision of Standard General, its parent investment firm, the company began acquiring assets at a breakneck pace.

In 2020, it secured the rights to the Bally’s name from Caesars and began rebranding its growing portfolio of casinos under a unified identity. This was more than marketing. It was a strategic move to build national recognition, linking physical casinos in Colorado, Atlantic City, and Mississippi under one historic brand.

But Bally’s ambitions went beyond bricks and mortar. Recognizing the accelerating shift toward digital gaming, the company made its most transformative move in 2021 with the acquisition of Gamesys Group, a UK-based operator with an expansive portfolio of successful online casino brands. With platforms like Virgin Games, Jackpotjoy, and Monopoly Casino under its belt, Gamesys brought with it a massive player base, cutting-edge iGaming technology, and a team with deep expertise in regulated online markets. This was the moment Bally’s truly evolved into a global, omni-channel entertainment brand.

The acquisition was not simply additive—it was catalytic. Bally’s now controlled both the real and digital realms of gambling. Players could move between their favorite online slots and blackjack tables to in-person gaming experiences in any number of Bally-branded resorts. It was a seamless ecosystem, bolstered by Bally’s earlier acquisitions in the sports betting and fantasy space, including Bet.Works, Monkey Knife Fight, and SportCaller. Through these strategic plays, Bally’s positioned itself not only as a gaming operator but as a tech-driven platform company ready to compete with the likes of DraftKings and FanDuel.

As Bally’s Corporation expanded its reach into Europe and North America, questions began to swirl about possible further deals, including speculation about a potential sale to Intralot, a global lottery and gaming company. However, that sale never materialized. Instead, Bally’s retained control over its assets, opting for strategic partnerships and investment stakes rather than surrendering its independence. Most notably, the company, through a merger with The Queen Casino & Entertainment and its continued relationship with Standard General, acquired a significant stake in Intralot, but not the other way around. The Bally’s name remained firmly under its own banner, steering its own future.

Today, Bally’s represents something rare in the gaming world—a brand that has successfully bridged old Vegas elegance with modern global reach. Its history is rooted in entertainment, from cabaret stages to poker tables. Its present is defined by digital prowess and international markets. And its future likely lies at the intersection of immersive online gaming, live experiences, and the continued evolution of the gambler’s journey, from desktops and phones to casino floors and back again.

In its Las Vegas incarnation, Horseshoe stands as a monument to where poker came from and where it’s headed. In its corporate form, Bally’s Corporation continues to make plays that reshape the gaming landscape worldwide. This dual identity—heritage and innovation—is what sets Bally’s apart in a crowded industry. It is both a throwback and a trailblazer, a place where you can chase the dream with a stack of chips or a smartphone.

And as Las Vegas continues to evolve, just like the industry it helped define, Bally’s will no doubt keep playing the long game—one smart bet at a time.