Allied Esports and Esports Arena are building a 30,000-square foot competition venue inside the Luxor Hotel and Casino, making it the first dedicated venue for competitive gaming on the Las Vegas Strip. Scheduled to open in early '18, the facility will include a competition stage, LED video wall, telescopic seating, daily gaming stations, concession stands and video production studios. Allied Esports is a joint venture of several Chinese gaming companies that is building a worldwide network of e-sports facilities. In '16 they invested in Santa Ana-based startup Esports Arena to advance their North American strategy. Vegas is expected to be the third facility built by the partnership, including Santa Ana and Oakland, scheduled to launch later this year. They hope to build up to 15 in North America, and hope to run the arenas as both local businesses and an international network of events. The arenas’ business model includes both hosting officially sanctioned competitions through rental agreements with publishers and tournament operators, running their own tournaments and opening daily for casual gamers, akin to old-school mall arcades. “Really, Vegas is going to be the flagship of our world presence, our total empire if you will,” said Allied Esports Int'l CEO Jud Hannigan. “Anything we’re doing regionally around the world [in big tournaments] would be leading to the pinnacle event held in Vegas each year.” Details of the e-sports partners’ arrangement with Luxor owner MGM Resorts Int'l were not disclosed, but Hannigan said, “The partnership is really about marketing and ensuring we draw people into the space, but ultimately in terms of the cost to build it out, it’s ours.” It is the first e-sports arena on the Strip, but at least the second in Las Vegas overall. Recently, Millennial Esports opened a similar facility in the downtown Neonopolis Mall.
