BetMGM Announces Poker Championship, Event to Run Opposite WSOP

Posted on: May 6, 2022, 01:48h. 

Last updated on: May 6, 2022, 02:01h.

Devin O'Connor @CasinoorgDevinO Read More
Expertise: Asia Pacific Gaming, Commercial Gaming, Legislation, Politics.

BetMGM hopes to give the World Series of Poker (WSOP) a run for its money this summer. The leading iGaming and online sportsbook operator this week announced the debut of its annual BetMGM Poker Championship, which will take place June 23-26 at ARIA Resort & Casino in Las Vegas.

BetMGM poker championship WSOP Las Vegas
A packed poker room at ARIA Resort & Casino in 2019. The MGM Resorts property on the Las Vegas Strip will host the first BetMGM Poker Championship this June. (Image: MGM Resorts)

The BetMGM Poker Championship will go down while many of the world’s best poker players are in Las Vegas for the 2022 WSOP and ARIA Poker Classic. MGM Resorts operates ARIA and owns BetMGM.

The first BetMGM Poker Championship descends on Las Vegas during one of the most exciting times of the poker season,” said Luke Staudenmaier, director of poker at BetMGM. “ARIA is a legendary poker brand and we’re thrilled that the Championship has become an integral part of this year’s Poker Classic.”

The BetMGM Poker Championship is a $3,500 buy-in no limit hold’em tournament. The event comes with a guaranteed $1 million prize for the last player standing. On June 25, the tournament will include a $600 buy-in BetMGM Poker Mystery Bounty event, which the iGaming firm says will be a first for ARIA to host a live poker knockout.

BetMGM Satellites

BetMGM will begin running online qualifiers now until the June Poker Championship. At least 15 qualifiers who play their way in will be awarded prize packages that cover their $3,500 buy-ins and travel expenses, which is highlighted by a five-night stay at the Strip casino resort.

BetMGM is an iGaming and sportsbook firm that operates three poker sites. The company’s poker brands include BetMGM, Borgata Online, and partypoker.

BetMGM operates legal online poker in New Jersey, Delaware, Pennsylvania, Michigan, and West Virginia. New Jersey and Delaware are two states participating in the Multi-State iGaming Agreement (MSIGA) to share player pools across state lines. BetMGM hopes to soon launch its poker app in Nevada, another state participating in the MSIGA.

Earlier this month, Michigan announced its intentions to join the MSIGA liquidity agreement, too.

Head-to-Head with WSOP

The BetMGM Poker Championship will give yet another tournament option for poker players in Las Vegas this summer. The BetMGM events will occur during the WSOP’s 53rd installment of the most famous poker series on the planet.

Following 17 years at the Rio, the WSOP is moving to Bally’s and Paris Las Vegas for this year’s edition. The 2022 WSOP runs from May 31 through July 20.

The WSOP’s marquee $10,000 Main Event buy-in begins on July 3. The WSOP expects Main Event participation to return to pre-pandemic levels after two difficult years that resulted in the 2020 event being hosted online until the final table assembled in person.

The 2019 WSOP $10,000 buy-in Main Event garnered a near-record 8,569 buy-ins. Last year’s event attracted only 6,650 buy-ins. The Main Event’s all-time best buy-in mark came in 2006, when the WSOP counted 8,773 buy-ins.

Excluding 2020, the WSOP Main Event has averaged 7,774 buy-ins each year over the last decade.