The biggest stories on the Strip in 2023

The world’s eyes were on Las Vegas this year – a little more than usual.

Las Vegas made headlines across the U.S. and internationally in 2023 for its involvement in major sporting events, massive infrastructure investments and far-reaching cybersecurity incidents.

Here are some of the top casino and tourism-related stories of the year.

The inaugural Las Vegas Formula One Grand Prix

Just like the traffic it produced, the international motorsport event is unavoidable in a Vegas-related list. The Grand Prix, on Nov. 16 to 18, brought cars speeding down the Strip and around the resort corridor on a worldwide broadcast. Resorts and hospitality officials deemed the three-day race a success – though some locals begged to differ.

Sphere opens, kicking off months of grand debuts

A combined $6.78 billion valued resorts and entertainment venues opened in Southern Nevada in the third and fourth quarters. The $2.3 billion Sphere, a 17,500-seat live entertainment venue east of The Venetian Expo, opened with its first residency, U2’s “Achtung Baby,” on Sept. 29. The futuristic spot is the largest sphere-shaped building in the world, standing at 366 feet tall and 516 feet wide.

But what’s captured the world’s attention is its massive screens. A 4-acre interior screen surrounds the stage and a 580,000 square-foot “exosphere” makes up the outside LED screen – one that can be seen for miles.

Station Casinos opens Durango in southwest valley

Then locals got a new project of their own. On Dec. 5, the Vegas-focused operator Station Casinos opened the $780 million Durango resort in the southwest valley. Its opening is the first step in parent company Red Rock Resorts’ plan to double its portfolio in the valley in a decade.

Fontainebleau’s storied history finally gets an ‘opening’ chapter

Barely a week later, the $3.7 billion, long-awaited Fontainebleau opened its doors with a grand opening for VIPs. The luxury resort was first proposed on the Strip in 2005 and construction began in 2007. But the Great Recession forced the project to go unfinished and ownership changed hands multiple times over the next decade-plus. In 2021, Fontainebleau Development CEO Jeffrey Soffer once again acquired the property. The resort had a star-studded, private grand opening in mid-December before the public could get its first look.

Major Strip operators face social engineering cyber attacks

It wasn’t all good attention on the Strip. A Sept. 10 cyberattack on MGM Resorts International, the largest resort operator, took down computer systems and crippled operations from the MGM app enabling guests to enter their hotel rooms to slot machine payouts and company email. It took nine days for the company to resume normal operations.

Meanwhile, competitor Caesars Entertainment was the target of its own attack in August. The company told the public about the incident on Sept. 14.

The cyberattackers in both cases used “social engineering” – in which bad actors enter the system by manipulating employees or third-party vendors – to gain access to the companies’ systems. MGM confirmed it did not pay a ransom, while Caesars reportedly paid millions.

The Oakland A’s plan a move, ballpark on the Strip

Major League Baseball will be on the Strip in the future after the Oakland Athletic’s moved forward with a plan to build a $1.5 billion, 33,000-seat stadium. But the decision wasn’t without some drama. Originally, the team signed a binding purchase agreement with Red Rock Resorts for 49 acres just west of the Strip, on the site of the former Wild Wild West casino. But it switched gears and now plans to build on nine acres on the site of the Tropicana hotel-casino, setting up the historic hotel for demolition.

Strip hospitality workers win largest contract increases in union history

The Culinary union and the three largest Strip employers reached new contract agreements with their union workers in November under the threat of a strike before the Grand Prix. The five-year contracts at MGM, Caesars and Wynn Resorts, covering roughly 35,000 workers, averted what could have been the largest hospitality strike in U.S. history.

Each full-time, non-tipped employee received a roughly $3-an-hour raise in the first year while tipped workers received a raise of roughly $1.50 hourly. The total compensation package, which includes sub-funds like healthcare and pensions, increased by 11 percent in the first year, the union said.

Penn breaks ground on new tower for M Resort

More Southern Nevada growth was assured in December when Penn Entertainment Inc. broke ground on a $206 million project for a 384-room tower.

The new tower, which will be attached to the existing building, is expected to be completed by mid-2025 and more than double M’s room capacity to 774. The tower also will provide additional meetings and convention space to the west Henderson property.

Casino for Fashion Show mall?

A new entertainment division of Howard Hughes Holdings could develop a new casino on the Las Vegas Strip — one that would rise above Fashion Show mall.

The Houston-based company made the off-hand announcement in October in a news release regarding the creation of a spinoff division. The new Seaport Entertainment division will take over entertainment operations of the company, which includes an 80 percent interest in the air rights above Fashion Show mall where a casino is being planned.

No other details of the proposed project have been released just yet.

McKenna Ross is a corps member with Report for America, a national service program that places journalists into local newsrooms. Contact her at mross@reviewjournal.com. Follow @mckenna_ross_ on X. Richard N. Velotta contributed to this story.