They say ‘success breeds success’ and in relation to the Ricoh Casino in Coventry that certainly seems the case.

While the venue in the midlands may be less than one year old it appears that the success of the venture has attracted interest from potential buyers.

 The £36 million investment by American based owner Isle of Capri has been very well received in the area and while the American parent company own a range of other similar complexes, it seems that the potential bidder is just interested in the Coventry venture.

Some in the industry believe that the party in question may be UK based.
The casino management admitted that they had received interest from a potential purchaser, but refused to reveal any details of the bidder.
Marcel Vernon, general manager of the Isle Casino, said: "It is well known in the entertainment industry that the Isle of Capri has worked hard and invested heavily to establish a strong emerging business.

"That, combined with our central location at such a great complex, has unsurprisingly attracted interest from potential purchasers.
"At the moment it is no more than that, and we have appointed consultants to look at any potential transaction.

"The Isle continues to trade as usual and to deliver a first class experience to our growing customer base."

It would be unfair to describe the complex as just a casino, even though the gambling operation is by far the most lucrative area of the complex. The development contains the largest man made water feature in the UK, a spectacle which required 40,000 beach pebbles!

Interestingly, the unknown party has chosen to pounce just months after Coventry Football Club and the Ricoh Arena were taken over by ex-football player and multi-millionaire Ray Ranson.

Whether the interest in the casino operation is linked to the new owners of the football club remains to be seen, but it shows that the UK casino industry is still as attractive to investors as ever.

There is a huge opportunity to expand the size of the complex and Isle of Capri had pinned their hopes on creating a super casino but that plan has been scuppered by the Government's u-turn on how casinos should be allowed to develop.

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