El Cartel

How to play El Cartel

The LVCVA launched the “Vegas 5-Day Sale” last year in response to growing public sentiment that Las Vegas no longer provided value and that resorts were focused on nickel-and-diming customers. Many on social media criticized the tourism agency’s efforts as “too little, too late.”

The LVCVA, however, seemingly found the campaign successful, returning the five-day sales event this year.

Vegas is where travelers come to trade the expected for the unforgettable. The ‘Vegas 5-Day Sale’ gives visitors even more reasons to book the trip they have been talking about, whether that means checking into an iconic resort, seeing a favorite artist live, celebrating a milestone, or simply making a little room for spontaneity,” said Kate Wik, chief marketing officer at the LVCVA.

How to play El Cartel

A private steakhouse and lounge is being planned for the $2 billion Athletics ballpark rising from the former Tropicana demolition site on the Strip. The Athletic Club will only be accessible to season ticket holders and their guests during games and other stadium events.

The venue, to be located directly behind home plate at field level, is projected to debut along with the ballpark in February 2028.

Renowned restaurateur Will Guidara—celebrated for his tenure co-owning New York City’s three Michelin-starred Eleven Madison Park and pioneering the “Unreasonable Hospitality” movement—is spearheading the design.

Hockey fans heading to Vegas Golden Knights games can now partake in way-cheaper stadium eats than the Athletic Club will offer. SMKD (Smoked Meats, Killer Drinks) BBQ has launched an upper-concourse food cart at T-Mobile Arena. Spearheaded by Top Chef Season 7 alumnus and Beat Bobby Flay champ Chef Alex Reznik (in partnership with Ogden Hospitality), the expansion builds on the success of SMKD’s brick-and-mortar location, which opened in November 2025 at 10895 S. Eastern Ave. in Henderson.

How to play El Cartel

Wilson expects others to follow.

For Wilson, the bigger point is not who else may follow, but why operators need these tools in the first place. Splash Tech was built to help operators make existing content portfolios work harder, using free-to-play experiences and a supplier-agnostic jackpot engine to drive engagement, retention, cross-sell and lifetime value across casino, sportsbook and third-party content.

Jackpots and free-to-play may be very different propositions, but Wilson judges both against the same unromantic measure: whether they produce value for the operator.