Barcelona or Madrid? Decision for the mega casino project ‘Eurovegas’ to be taken early September

Barcelona (ACN).- September will be decision time. Barcelona and Madrid will know at the beginning of that month whether they have been chosen by Las Vegas Sands Corporation to host its next mega casino project, ‘EuroVegas’. The company of the US multi-billonaire Sheldon Adelson plans to build a macro complex of hotels, casinos and business centres in Europe, and its main candidates are Barcelona and Madrid. The company expects the complex, which will imply an investment of between €3 billion and €6 billion, to generate about 30.000 jobs. Adelson’s Chief Operating Officer, Michael Leven, said it is “very difficult” to decide between these two rival cities because they both have “fantastic qualities”. Leven was in Barcelona on Monday with a group of executives from the company to see ‘in situ’ the lands offered by the Catalan government to build the macro complex.

Michael Leven said the final decision will be delayed until “early September” because both candidates are offering “fascinating” lands and better conditions than initially. The COO said Barcelona and Madrid have “attributes” to host the mega complex, and rejected claims that the decision process could be compared to a “football match between Barça and Real Madrid”. In fact, despite Barcelona and Madrid being the main candidates, he did not completely rule out the possibility to build EuroVegas elsewhere.

Leven said that the project would depend on the current legislation and the banks investment. The COO of Las Vegas Sands said the lands offered by Catalonia, by the Delta del Llobregat, close to the airport, are “fantastic” and “impressive”. The final decision, though, will be taken by Sheldon Adelson, and only once the team has also visited the sites offered by Madrid. Some groups are protesting against the project, saying that the area around the park of Delta del Llobregat should be protected. In fact, some of the critics have been protesting against the visit of Las Vegas Sands Corporation executives.

The spokesman of the Catalan Government, Frances Homs, said, however, that Catalonia has a “moral duty” to study the proposals of Adelson, especially considering the bad economic situation that the country is facing. “Do or do unemployed people not deserve that we take our time to analyse the proposals? We think so”, said Homs at a press conference after the visit of Las Vegas Sands executives. The spokesman criticised the political parties that reject the macro complex, accusing them of being “populist”. He said that if Barcelona is finally chosen the negotiations would be done in a very serious and transparent way.

Smoking and a golf course

Leven said in a press conference that, if Barcelona was to be chosen, the company would protect the environment in the area. He said they were considering building a golf course with “some houses”. He said the project would be “very adequate for the environment” and would not negatively affect an area that they “understand should be protected”.

The COO of Las Vegas Sands said they are still negotiating with the authorities the possibility to make the smoking laws inside the buildings more flexible. Nowadays, it is banned to smoke in all bars, restaurants and clubs in Spain. However, Leven rejected claims that the company is seeking a “better deal” than its competitors.

The conditions asked by Adelson Sheldon to build the complex in Barcelona or Madrid are usually the subject of debate. However, the spokesman of the Catalan government said Catalonia “cannot afford” to reject the proposal without considering, because the plans include the generation of many new jobs. He said the project could boost “modern tourism” in the country, because casinos are not the main part of the complex, but rather convention and business centres. The final decision will have to wait until September.