Not Leaving Las Vegas: Casinos Gear Up for WrestleMania's Return

^{The WWE's Paul "Triple H" Levesque confirmed this weekend that WrestleMania in Las Vegas was such a big hit in 2025, that the spectacle will be coming back to Allegiant Stadium for WrestleMania 42 next year. (Photo: courtesy of WWE / YouTube)}

WWE have officially confirmed that they will ‘double down’ on Las Vegas in 2026 by bringing a second consecutive WrestleMania to the Allegiant Stadium in Sin City. 

It will take place on April 18 and 19 with WWE Chief Creative Officer Paul ‘Triple H’ Levesque making the announcement during the Money in the Bank Premium Live Event.

"In my experience, anything worth doing is worth doing twice," he said in a pre-filmed video segment, "So, I've got just one question for you. Are you ready to double down?"

Traditionally, the WWE’s flagship event tours the country, and it has only once been held in the same city in back-to-back years. That was in the late 1980s when Atlantic City hosted WrestleMania IV and V.

Las Vegas has thus achieved something quite unprecedented, and its news that is sure to be welcomed by the casinos on the Strip and Downtown. WrestleMania 41 in 2025 attracted and estimated 180,000 fans to Vegas, bringing with them a $215 million boost to the city’s economy. 

That included a record 120,000 attendance across both nights as well as fans who came to watch the Raw and Smackdown tapings at the T-Mobile Arena, WWE World at the Las Vegas Convention Centre, and a spate of smaller events, including the Hal of Fame Ceremony, to Fontainebleau. 

During the post-show news conference, Levesque explained further. 

“When you have a record-shattering, biggest WrestleMania of all time in Vegas, it’s great to be able to say we’re going back to the entertainment capital of the world," Levesque said (via 411mania). "And we’re looking forward to breaking this year’s records there.”

They've got a new logo and everything. Could Las Vegas become WrestleMania's new forever home? (Photo: courtesy of WWE)

Sorry NOLA, Vegas Is Ready to Rumble

Initially, WWE announced New Orleans to be the host city for WrestleMania 42, with the reveal given great fanfare by virtue of a rare appearance by Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson on a broadcast of Raw in February. 

They recently backtracked on that, though, revealing they had stripped New Orleans of the event but not confirming why or which city would benefit, although reports quickly circulated it was to be Vegas again.

While WrestleMania 41 received mixed reviews from fans, WWE executives appear to have then been incredibly impressed by Las Vegas’ capacity to cope with the demands of hosting the event, which has grown into one of the biggest events in entertainment or sports since the comparatively humble beginnings in front of 19,000 people at Madison Square Garden in 1985.

"Vegas is built for stuff like what we do," Levesque said. "To be able to go back a second time, the things that we learned this time, and how we handled the week there and everything else, this one will be even better."

Viewership was up 114% over the record set the previous year, and it was also the most seen WWE event of all time on social media, reaching an astonishing 1.1 billion views across the company’s channels. Perhaps most importantly, the gate revenue was reported to have surpassed the $38.5 million of WrestleMania 40. 

Merchandise sales, largely driven by the WWE World event at the Las Vegas Convention Centre, was also up more than 45%. 

Indeed, the availability of the Convention Centre again appears to have been a key part of negotiations to bring WrestleMania back to Las Vegas. Initially, WWE were offered alternative space at Mandalay Bay, but did not believe it would suffice. That is believed to have been a key reason for the delay in the announcement. 

Welcome Casino Revenue Boost

Although wrestling fans are believed to not be in favour of a second successive WrestleMania in Las Vegas, the casinos on the Vegas Strip certainly will be. 

So far, 2025 has shown worrying trends, with year-on-year gaming revenue and visitation down, largely fueled by uncertainty over the economy and many international tourists choosing the stay away due to concerns over US foreign and domestic policies. 

March this year saw a 7.8% drop in visitation from the previous year, with April down 5.1%. Casinos on the Strip saw a 4.78% reduction in incoming from gaming winnings too for March, although other parts of the state, including Downtown and the Boulder Strip, won more money than usual. 

A second successive WrestleMania, then, will be good news for the casinos, with MGM especially likely to benefit considerably from the increased footfall WrestleMania 42 will bring. 

For fans who want to bring the thrill home, there’s never been a better time to explore real money casino sites and the latest casino apps, giving you a piece of the action wherever you are.