Eurovegas facts for kids

Eurovegas was a very large entertainment and casino project. It was planned for Alcorcón, a town near Madrid, Spain. The idea for Eurovegas came out in September 2012. It was supposed to be finished around 2025 or 2026. However, the project was stopped. This happened because the main investor, Sheldon Adelson, and the Spanish government could not agree on certain rules.

In September 2012, Sheldon Adelson, who owned the company Las Vegas Sands Corp., wanted to make a big investment in Europe. His team talked with government officials in Madrid and Barcelona.

Later, Las Vegas Sands Corp. announced that Madrid was chosen for the "Eurovegas" project. In February 2013, it was decided that Alcorcón, a town close to Madrid, would be the exact location. Building this huge complex was expected to take about ten years.

What Would Eurovegas Have Looked Like?

If Eurovegas had been built by 2025 or 2026, it would have covered a very large area. This area would have been about 2000 acres, which is like 7.5 square kilometers. It was planned to include many different things:

• twelve skyscraper hotels, some as tall as 150 meters (about 500 feet). These hotels would have had thousands of luxury rooms for guests.
• six casinos for gambling.
• three golf courses and other sports places. This included an indoor stadium and tennis courts.
• a large shopping mall with many stores.
• a big convention center for meetings and events.
• many different kinds of restaurants.
• various leisure centres, such as a spa and an adventure park.
• an amphitheater that could hold 20,000 people for concerts and shows.
• parks, including a nature reserve.

The company wanted to start building the first part in 2016. But there were reports that the Government of Spain was not keen on giving the special legal permissions needed.

Why Was Eurovegas Cancelled?

Eurovegas was not built in Madrid mainly because of disagreements over rules. The people behind Eurovegas wanted to allow smoking inside the casinos. However, other gambling businesses in Spain did not agree with this. They felt it would be unfair to them.

On December 13, 2013, it was reported that Sheldon Adelson had cancelled the Eurovegas project. It was a very large project, planned to cost about $30 billion. The main reason given was that the Spanish government would not agree to certain legal requests. For example, the company wanted to be free from the rule that bans smoking in public indoor places across Europe. They also wanted long-term guarantees about tax rules and rules for workers.

The deputy prime minister of Spain at that time, Soraya Sáenz de Santamaría, explained the government's view. She said it was not possible to create special laws that would protect the project from future changes in rules. This is because courts can make their own decisions, and laws can change over time.

Where Else Are There Big Resorts?

Eurovegas would have been the third very large resort complex built by Las Vegas Sands outside of the United States. The other two are in Macau and Singapore. The full project was planned to open in 2025 or 2026.

See also

In Spanish: Eurovegas para niños