Bill Simmons Betting Investigation: What Happened
Alex Harper • Sep 2, 2026 
Reviewed By Paul Jacobs
Casino Expert
Maverick Gaming will close two more Washington casinos this fall. Riverside Casino and Great American Casino, both in Tukwila, will shut down on November 1, 2026. The closures will cut 238 jobs.
Maverick filed the layoff notices with Washington state on August 31, 2026. The move is part of a bankruptcy case that has already cost the company other Washington casinos.
Why Maverick Is Closing These Casinos
Maverick Washington LLC is part of Maverick Gaming. It filed Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) notices for both Tukwila casinos. A WARN notice tells the state and workers about a big layoff before it happens.
Riverside Casino will lose 142 jobs. Great American Casino will lose another 96. Hourly workers at Riverside belong to Teamsters Local 117. Maverick filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in July 2025. The company blames three things for its money troubles: competition from tribal casinos, rising labor costs, and heavy debt.
A Pattern of Maverick Gaming Closures Across Washington
The Tukwila closures are not the only ones. Maverick Gaming has shut down casino after casino across the state since 2025. Maverick shut down Silver Dollar SeaTac Casino on June 30, 2026, laying off about 65 people. Crazy Moose Mountlake Casino and Silver Dollar Mill Creek Casino both closed on July 31, 2026. Those two closures cut another 123 jobs.
Four more cardrooms closed around the same time. These included Dragon Tiger Casino, Palace Casino, Silver Dollar Renton, and Roman Casino. Once the Tukwila casinos close, Maverick Gaming will have shut nine Washington casinos. All nine closed since it filed for bankruptcy.
How Maverick Gaming Ended Up Here
Eric Persson and Justin Beltram founded Maverick Gaming in 2017. Both had worked as executives at Las Vegas Sands. The company bought cheap Washington cardrooms after the Supreme Court struck down the federal sports betting ban in 2018.
It bought 24 venues in just a few years. That made it the biggest gaming company in the state outside the tribes. That growth rested on one big bet. Maverick expected state lawmakers to legalize sports betting across Washington. Instead, a 2020 law limited sports betting to tribal casinos only.
Maverick sued the state in 2022. The company argued the tribal-only rule gave an unfair advantage, but a court dismissed the case.
The financial pressure kept building. Maverick also carries a loan of roughly $305.8 million from before the bankruptcy, backed by nearly all its assets. Rising labor costs added to the strain, and Tukwila’s minimum wage jumped 46% between 2022 and 2025.
What Happens Next
Maverick Gaming still runs casinos in Washington, Nevada, and Colorado. But its Washington business keeps getting smaller.
On August 31, 2026, Maverick’s bankruptcy case picked up a fourth extension from the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Texas. The extension gives the company more time to file its recovery plan. For the 238 workers losing their jobs on November 1, the outcome is already set.
The Bigger Picture for Maverick Gaming and Washington’s Casino Industry
Maverick Gaming’s troubles point to a bigger trend. Nontribal casinos in Washington compete against tribal casinos. Tribal casinos hold the only rights to offer legal sports betting in the state, and often have lower costs.
For players who use real money online casinos, these closures show something important. State gambling laws shape who survives. In Washington, those laws have favored tribal casinos over rivals like Maverick.
