Circus Circus Reno is owned by Caesars Entertainment, Inc., the publicly traded gaming company that trades on the NASDAQ under the ticker CZR.1Caesars Entertainment. The Row Reno Caesars runs the casino-hotel as one of three connected properties in downtown Reno marketed together as The Row, alongside the Silver Legacy Resort Casino and the Eldorado Resort Casino. Unlike several other Caesars properties around the country, the Reno real estate does not appear to be leased from VICI Properties, the real estate investment trust that owns many Caesars-operated buildings. VICI’s published portfolio lists no Reno properties, which means Caesars likely holds both the operating rights and the underlying real estate.2VICI Properties. VICI Gaming Property List
How Caesars Came to Own It
The current ownership traces back to a $17.3 billion deal completed in July 2020, when Eldorado Resorts, Inc. acquired Caesars Entertainment Corporation.3Caesars Entertainment. Eldorado Resorts and Caesars Entertainment Complete Merger Once the deal closed, Eldorado adopted the better-known Caesars name for the combined company. That is why Circus Circus Reno, a property Eldorado had owned for years, now sits under the Caesars umbrella rather than the other way around.
Eldorado itself picked up Circus Circus Reno in November 2015. It bought the property from MGM Resorts International in a $72.5 million cash deal that also handed Eldorado MGM’s 50 percent stake in the neighboring Silver Legacy Resort Casino.4Caesars Entertainment. Eldorado Resorts Completes Acquisition of MGMs 50 Percent Interest in Silver Legacy Resort Casino Reno and All Assets of Circus Circus Reno That purchase gave Eldorado full control over the connected downtown corridor and set up the unified branding that followed.
What The Row Means for Ownership
Caesars operates Circus Circus Reno, the Silver Legacy, and the Eldorado as a single commercial unit under The Row brand. The three properties span six contiguous city blocks and are connected by skywalks.1Caesars Entertainment. The Row Reno Marketing, loyalty, and back-office operations are centralized, so a guest earns and spends rewards credits at any of the three casinos under one management structure. Within that structure, Circus Circus Reno fills the family-friendly slot, anchored by the Carnival Midway arcade and redemption games, while the other two target a traditional adult gaming crowd.
Who Owned Circus Circus Reno Before
The property opened on July 1, 1978, built by Circus Circus Enterprises, the same company behind the original Circus Circus in Las Vegas. William Bennett and Bill Pennington led the company, having acquired the Las Vegas Circus Circus in 1974 before expanding into Northern Nevada, with Pennington focused on the Reno side.5UNLV. Business Hall of Fame Inductee – William G Bennett
Circus Circus Enterprises later became Mandalay Resort Group, which MGM Resorts International acquired in 2005. MGM then held the Reno property for roughly a decade before the 2015 sale to Eldorado.6U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Eldorado Resorts Inc Form 10-K The ownership chain, in order: Circus Circus Enterprises/Mandalay (1978–2005), MGM Resorts International (2005–2015), Eldorado Resorts (2015–2020), and Caesars Entertainment, Inc. from 2020 to today.