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Will The WSOP Move From the Rio in 2020?

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Are the days of the World Series of Poker at the Rio numbered? They are if a report from Vital Vegas has any validity. According to a couple of Twitter posts from Vital Vegas, the WSOP will be leaving the Rio once the new Caesars Convention Center opens in 2020. Also, talks behind a potential sale of the Rio are apparently moving forward.

Sale of the Rio Imminent?

In case you haven’t been paying close attention to all of the chatter over the last few years surrounding Las Vegas casinos, the Rio All-Suite Hotel & Casino has been rumored to be on sale for years with multiple reports that they are “close” to a sale.

This time around, it is Las Vegas news source Vital Vegas that is claiming that a sale of the Rio is close. They started with a somewhat stunning tweet on Thursday about the potential future of the World Series of Poker.

Soon afterward, they followed up with the following:

If this tweet is to be believed, it seems that talks about a sale of the Rio have moved to the next stage. Of course, this is nothing new and one follower of Vital Vegas pointed out this fact. This prompted the following response:

Whether or not this rumor is indeed “solid” at this point is anyone’s guess, but it is no secret that the property is one of the lesser properties in the Caesars portfolio in Las Vegas. If not for the Rio Convention Center and the World Series of Poker, one would wonder if the property would not have already been moved.

At this point, this is still just a rumor as nobody from within Caesars has announced anything in the way of a sale. Of course, if what Vital Vegas is claiming is indeed true, then the face of the World Series of Poker will change in a couple of years.

Will the WSOP Move to Caesars Forum in 2020?

If the rumors are true, then the 2019 World Series of Poker may be the last at the Rio in Las Vegas. Caesars Forum is presently under construction and is scheduled to open in 2020. The new venue is located behind the LINQ on the Vegas Strip and connects to both the Flamingo and Harrah’s.

The Rio has been the home of the World Series of Poker since 2005 after the explosion in the game following the win of Chris Moneymaker in 2003. There simply wasn’t enough space at Binions Horseshoe downtown to accommodate.

Harrah’s Entertainment, now Caesars Entertainment, purchased the rights to the WSOP along with Binion’s Horseshoe in 2004 and decided to move the venue to the Rio and it has remained there ever since. Continued growth of the event has forced Caesars to reserve larger portions of the Convention Center for the event and for many, the WSOP is the only time they go to the Rio all year.

If the WSOP were to move, it would bring an end to a chapter in WSOP that saw the event enjoy tremendous growth, but in turn, the event would move to a venue where continued growth is possible.

For some, the move would make attending the event easier as it would be accessible from multiple points on the strip. There are also concerns that the move would become a logistical nightmare as it would increase overall traffic on the strip and potentially congest areas that already suffer from over-congestion at times.

Regardless of what happens, a move to the Rio will not happen for a couple of years. The 2019 WSOP is safe for now and depending on when the Caesars Forum opens, the 2020 WSOP may also stay put. Anything afterward is anyone’s guess at the moment.

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