Macau, Dec. 31, 2025 (Lusa) - Hundreds of people said goodbye to Landmark early this morning, the last “satellite casino” in Macau to close its doors and a chapter in the history of gambling in the territory.
Samuel Lei and the Landmark casino are portraits of an era about to come to an end. Lei is the image of a generation that, at the beginning of the century, transitioned from secondary school to work as croupiers in Macau's casinos that emerged after the liberalisation of gambling.
The Landmark, then called Pharaoh's Palace, was the territory's first “satellite casino”, a management model adopted by Stanley Ho Hung-sun (1921-2020), who held a monopoly on gambling until 2002, to face competition.
Landmark, under the supervision of Sociedade de Jogos de Macau (SJM), was also the last to close its doors after the new law regulating gambling, passed in 2022, set today as the deadline for ending the activity of these “satellites”.
It is 10 p.m. (3 p.m. in Lisbon) on Tuesday. Samuel, accompanied by three former colleagues, paid a final tribute to the place where he worked between 2003 and 2006. He started out earning 11,000 patacas (€1,168 at the current exchange rate).
"At the time, the average salary in Macau was five or six thousand patacas (€530 or €637) and if you graduated from university you might earn eight thousand [(849). It was attractive to teenagers," he tells Lusa.
Two decades later, Samuel notes, the option of the gaming table over higher education is less prominent, with a slight increase in croupiers' salaries, which "are around 18,000 patacas (€1,911)".
Samuel and his friends meet on the third floor of the casino, where the only room at Pharaoh's Palace once operated. Facing the four figures is a giant sphinx, representing the Egyptian influence conceived by local businessman David Chow Kam Fai - "Macau's first themed casino", according to the project's website.
There is nothing left in the cloakroom. With no more bags or coats to look after, Yu, one of more than a thousand employees at the venue, counts down the minutes to "this important moment".
"I want to go down there, I'd like to film it," notes the employee, who will be transferred to the Lisboa casino, owned by SJM. The company, which has closed eight “satellite casinos” this year alone, has committed to securing the jobs of its workers.
By 10:30 p.m., there was only activity on the ground floor. In one of the wings, employees in red vests count chips from a “big and small” dice game table that has just ended.
More than a hundred people lean over six baccarat tables, the game that circulates the most money in local casinos. Bets are placed right up to the last minute. Egyptian civilisation, emblazoned on the walls of this hall, and employees of the Macau Government's Gaming Inspection and Coordination Department bear witness to the moment.
"I came here specifically to watch the closing," says Xiao Xiao, from Hubei province in central China. "There are so many people from Hubei here," she adds.
At the table opposite, Gaia, from Macau, plays for the symbolism. She holds a chip worth 500 Hong Kong dollars (€50). "My mother has worked here for over 20 years, it's a very special moment," she says.
Satellite casinos appeared in Macau at the turn of the century as a result of the liberalisation of gambling, although they were based on a model that existed during Portuguese administration: privately owned casinos managed by Stanley Ho's company.
Under this model, known as "4+4+2", 40% of the revenue went to the government, 40% to Ho and 20% to the owners, gambling expert Ben Lee explains to Lusa.
With the liberalisation of the sector, Lee notes, a new arrangement evolved, with the government retaining 40%, "about 4% to 5% - pure franchise fee - for SJM" and the remainder going to the owners, who were given full management control.
"The expansion of “satellite casinos” was also one of Stanley Ho's strategies to counter the entry of new large casino resorts. The old saying: quantity has its own quality, and for some time they were very effective," adds the founder of gaming consultancy IGamix.
After the transfer of Macau, the expert notes, Ho "found a loophole that allowed the proliferation" of these casinos. "And the government, in a way, accepted this as a “fait accompli”, without really investigating the legality," he added.
Lee, who once managed the Diamond “satellite casino” at the Holiday Inn hotel, recalls how Beijing was caught “by surprise” with the distribution of gaming licences.
In 2002, contracts were signed between the Macau government, SJM, Galaxy Casino and Wynn Resorts Macau for the award of three concessions.
At the end of that year, an amendment to the Galaxy Casino concession contract was made, allowing Las Vegas Sands to enter the market through a sub-concession. SJM and Wynn also signed sub-concession contracts with MGM and Melco Resorts, respectively.
About a decade ago, Lee adds, "rumours began to spread" that representatives from Beijing were in contact with people linked to the sector.
"And the questions they asked were: How did three concessions become six? And how did three American operators end up controlling 50% of the concessions and sub-concessions, when initially there was only talk of one? And the satellite casinos appeared without warning. (...) And then, I think the message became very clear: “clean everything up”," he explains.
At 11:35 p.m., the order to leave is given. Outside, more than two hundred people wait for the countdown to end when, at 11:59 p.m., the curtain covering the casino's name gets stuck and threatens to fall. Only two men perched on a lifting platform managed to complete the final task. And Egypt finally breathes its last breath in Macau.
CAD/ADB // ADB.
Lusa
