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Dan Ippolito
As Casino City's associate editor, Dan produces and edits all of our weekly newsletters, and he writes about the gaming industry for our websites and the GPWA Times Magazine. Dan graduated from Marist College in 2017 with a degree in Communications and a concentration in Sports. More articles by Dan Ippolito

Casino City’s Friday Five: Penalties, big wins and a key vote edition

28 August 2026
By Dan Ippolito

Voters in Nebraska will have their say regarding online sports betting on the 2026 ballot. In addition, an Australian casino has been hit with fines for allowing a minor entry and to gamble, and the UKGC penalized an online gambling business for several failures. Also this week, we saw a major slot jackpot from Las Vegas, a poker tournament win in Atlantic City, and a big ballot year for Nebraska sports betting.

Let’s begin with some luck from Las Vegas:

5. $1.5 million slot win at Resorts World Las Vegas
Luck struck at Resorts World Las Vegas on 23 August in the afternoon, when a guest visiting from California hit the Dragon Link Grand Progressive Jackpot for $1,565,954 after landing the winning Grand Progressive and bonus combination.

4. Brian Luo wins WSOP Circuit Main Event in Atlantic City
On 24 August, Atlantic City a new World Series of Poker Circuit champion.

Outlasting a total field of 698 entrants in the Harrah's Atlantic City WSOP Circuit Main Event, Philadelphia native Brian Luo, now based in Madison, Wisconsin, takes home the lion’s share of the $964,164 prize pool, along with his second WSOP Circuit ring.

With Luo’s first WSOP Circuit ring coming in an online Super Circuit event in 2022, which came with a respectable $4,667 score, Luo’s victory in the Harrah’s Resort Atlantic City WSOP Circuit Main Event serves as the crowning achievement of his WSOP career.

3. UKGC penalizes QuinnBet
The online gambling business will pay £609,104 after a U.K. Gambling Commission investigation revealed anti-money laundering and social responsibility failures.

QuinnBet (Gibraltar) Limited – which runs quinnbet.com – will pay the money as part of a settlement with the UKGC.

An investigation was launched after a compliance assessment revealed anti-money laundering and social responsibility failures, including deploying a manual process which allowed those aged between 18 to 24 to spend over deposit limits the operator had set for this potentially vulnerable group.

2. Minors 22 casino visits lead to $2.25 million in fines
The NSW Independent Casino Commission in Australia fined Crown Sydney $1.75 million and The Star Sydney $500,000 for allowing a minor to enter their venues on multiple occasions between April and August 2025.

The 16-year-old gained entry to Crown Sydney on 19 separate occasions, was able to attain silver membership status and served complimentary alcohol. He visited The Star Sydney on three separate occasions.

The minor gained entry to both casinos using a fraudulent driver’s license.

According to NICC Chief Commissioner Philip Crawford, the 16-year-old “entered casino gaming areas and gamble away a significant amount of money.”

1. Nebraska voters to decide online sports betting measures in 2026
Nebraska voters will have the opportunity to decide on two sports wagering measures in the 2026 general election after both petitions surpassed the required signature thresholds. One measure would authorize online sports wagering through a constitutional amendment, while the other would establish regulations for the activity.

The sports betting authorization amendment collected at least 138,473 valid signatures, while the regulation initiative secured at least 96,918.

The Nebraska Secretary of State’s office must certify the 2026 general election ballot by 11 September 2026.

Casino City’s Friday Five: Penalties, big wins and a key vote edition is republished from Online.CasinoCity.com.

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