The Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation (OLG) has extended its Caesars Windsor casino operating agreement with Caesars Entertainment by another seven months as it continues to search for the next operator.

The OLG agreement had been set to expire in August 2025 after a previous extension but will now run until March 2026.

The crown corporation is currently conducting a competitive procurement process to select a highly qualified service provider to handle the day-to-day operations of the Windsor Casino.

“Extending the current operating agreement will ensure sufficient time to complete the procurement process and transition the day-to-day operations to the successful proponent,” said an OLG statement. “The integrity of the process is of the utmost importance to the OLG.”

New Unifor Local 444 president James Stewart, whose Unifor unit represents around 1,800 workers at the casino, said the extension removes the threat to employees that could be posed by a potential ownership change during planned bargaining talks early next year.

“It won’t impact the daily activities of the workers, but it removes the weight of a potential ownership change in the middle of bargaining,” said Stewart, per the Windsor Star. “Our contract deadline is April next year and we’ll probably start negotiations in February-March. That weight of an ownership change is now off our minds with the extension.”

Change could be afoot in Windsor

Caesars has run the famous Windsor casino since it opened 30 years ago, but things could be changing in a big way over the next year. The OLG, which owns the casino on behalf of the Government of Ontario, opened up a bidding process more than a year ago, back in April 2023. It opened the RFP stage of the process in October.

“We know the process is pretty in-depth,” Stewart added. “Lots of companies have to do a lot to bid on the service contract. I don’t know when the deadline is, but I think bids are still open for a few weeks. They still plan to announce it next year.”

The Globe and Mail reported in January, citing three gambling industry sources, that Bally’s Corporation and Mohegan Gaming and Entertainment are Caesars two contestants in a three-horse race for the rights. Mohegan operates two casinos in Niagara Falls, Ont. Bally’s Director of External Communications Tim Louie told Canadian Gaming Business that the company had no comment on the rumours.

Stewart’s predecessor as Unifor Local 444 president, Dave Cassidy, suggested that Caesars should be the favourite “based on the job they’ve done running the casino and providing quality jobs.” Caesars Windsor is thought to support more than 2,000 jobs and is a key component of Windsor’s border-city tourism industry. The OLG says the City of Windsor has received more than $95 million in payments from the casino since it opened in 1994.

Canadian Gaming Business reached out to Caesars to see if any further comment was available.

Caesars Windsor’s casino floor offers more than 2,200 slot machines, more than 80 table games, and a physical Caesars Sportsbook which was opened last year as a key post-pandemic strategic move. The accompanying resort features 750 hotel rooms, numerous restaurants and bars, and the 5,000-seat Colosseum theater which often hosts internationally renowned musical artists and shows.

OLG said it expects to announce the selected operator by spring 2025. The lottery corporation’s director of media relations, Tony Bitonti, told Canadian Gaming Business that it will not be releasing any further details or comments on the procurement process “until the selected service provider is announced.”