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Lebanon does have legal gambling, in spite of having a large percentage of its population following the Islamic religion, although unlike most Middle Eastern countries, Muslims only represent about half of the population here, so the influence of Islam is less.

It’s not that gambling is wide open here though, as while they do have a decent sized casino, the Casino du Liban in Jounieh, legal gambling for Lebanese is restricted to either gambling there or playing the lottery. (1)

The restrictions here have a lot more to do with money rather than ideology though, as the government owns a big stake in the casino, and gets a lot of tax revenue from it, so they granted a monopoly to the operation and maintain this monopoly.

They do not want any competition from other gambling sources, and take in over $100 million a year from the casino, which they guard pretty fiercely. Even though it may seem to be a good idea for them to allow an expansion of land based gambling here, they see other enterprises as not just sources of tax revenue but as competition as well, due to their ownership stake in the existing casino.

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There is another casino in Lebanon though, the Orient Queen, a luxury ship that sails out of Beirut, and of course with the betting all taking place out to sea, this is outside the jurisdiction of the Lebanese government. (2)

Gambling cruises generally don’t run if the market within an area is being satisfied, and therefore the mere existence of this may suggest that there is room for expansion on dry land, and if the Lebanese government insists on a stake, as they did with the Casino du Liban, there’s no reason why they couldn’t probably put a deal like that together again, which by the way was massively in favor of the government.

The biggest reason to expand land based gambling, and online gambling as well here, is to capture the large sports betting market that has recently been shut out. There are no land-based sports betting operations here, but up until 2013 Lebanese players could play all they wanted to online, but recently the government stepped in and made online gambling illegal and also started blocking these sites. (3)

This was all about maintaining a monopoly though, and players would not only be betting on sports online, something that wasn’t offered here and still isn’t, they’d also be playing online poker and playing at online casinos, which the government felt impacted their take.

It probably did, but the plan should have been to regulate online gambling here, and get a piece of that action, but as is the case with expanding land based gambling as well, they just don’t want any expansion of any kind here.

The Poker Scene In Lebanon

Aside from the national lottery, aptly named ‘Play Lebanon,’ has given a monopoly on online gambling in Lebanon, the only site that wasn’t blocked was an online poker site called Stars of Holdem, which although based out of Costa Rica, was owned by a Lebanese businessman who paid taxes to them on it.

This site is out of operation now though and we’re down to zero approved online gambling and online poker sites, other than the Play Lebanon lottery site. The rest are blocked, and unlike some countries which only make a half hearted effort to block online gambling sites, they do a very good job of it here.

Almost everyone has access to the internet here, unlike many countries in the world, and Lebanon has worked hard to build its telecommunications infrastructure over the last few years, going from less than half of the country having access in 2009 to virtually everyone now. (4)

So in spite of this wide access, where pretty much everyone would have access to online poker sites, the government has at least attempted to shut out online poker players, making them travel to the one casino, or on the casino cruise ship, both of which offer a limited amount of live poker anyway. The Casino de Liban offers regular poker tournaments, and together with the internet, poker has really caught on in popularity in Lebanon. (5)

There are also a few famous poker pros that are of Lebanese descent, including WSOP main event champion Joe Hashem, Sam Farha, who finished second at the main event and has won 3 WSOP bracelets, as well as Freddy Deeb who has won a couple of bracelets there. So these ambassadors have also helped spread the popularity of poker here. (6)

Online Poker in Lebanon

There is also a fair number of Lebanese poker players that play online, and in spite of the government’s efforts to block them, this doesn’t tend to do much to stop people from playing online, and a lot of players are simply connecting to the poker sites through virtual private networks, with servers in other countries that don’t have such restrictions.

In fact you can pick from a number of countries that you want to connect to the internet from, and this technique is widely used by poker players in many countries that have such restrictions placed upon poker sites and gambling sites. However, there are some poker sites, for example, on Asian networks like GGN that have various poker sites you can sign up at with no need for VPN’s.

These sites, in no particular order, are: PPI Poker and Natural8 Gaming – click on the links to go to the reviews for more information on these great rooms.

This isn’t lost on the government though and there is talk now of looking to regulate and tax it, like many other countries have done, especially in Europe where this has really caught on now. Since the Lebanese government is driven by tax revenue when it comes to gambling, and they have no problem with people gambling as long as they get their take from it, well they aren’t getting any take from the online gambling that goes on now, their efforts to stop it can be easily defeated by players, but if they allow it and regulate it then they can increase their coffers that way.

This is a ways off though at best, but in the meantime, Lebanese online poker players will simply have to keep using virtual private networks, or VPN’s, to hook up to their favorite poker sites. Due to the continuing popularity of online poker here, players still have a wide selection of poker sites to choose from, so things aren’t really so bad for now.

References:

1. Lebanon Casinos

2. The Laws of Lebanon for Online Gambling

3. Online Gambling Sites in Lebanon

4. Telecommunications in Lebanon

5. Online Poker Sites in Lebanon

6. Lebanese Poker Players

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During the fifties and sixties Lebanon witnessed a period of prosperity and economic boom due to great tourism income. During that period, Lebanon became the perfect destination for vacationers from all around the world. In fact, some of the tourism activities banned in neighboring countries were allowed in Lebanon such as gambling, which was practiced in accordance with special permits.

Location

A decree was issued on July 29, 1957 licensing gaming exclusively to Casino du Liban. This casino is located in Maameltein, Jounieh in Lebanon and is 22 km north of Beirut. With an area of about 35,000 square meters, the casino has over 500 slot machines and around 60 gaming tables. It has a showroom, night club, theater, banquet facility and five restaurants.

Accordingly the Maameltein area was chosen, more specifically a rocky hill overlooking the Mediterranean Sea that was inaccessible by car. Therefore Casino du Liban was obliged to purchase adjacent lands to open a special road leading to the hill from the seaside. It was also essential to make of this rocky hill a green area; the company had thus recourse to a French specialist to plant saplings and seedlings between the rocks, which were perforated at one and a half meter depth for water drainage. The land was beautifully turned into a conifer forest commensurate with the nature of the region. And the Casino was conceived…

The beginnings

The Lebanese law (inspired from French constitution) defined its location: away from the urban areas of Beirut, Tripoli and Saida (minimum distance: 15 kilometers), a beautiful edifice nestled in the Lebanese coast reflecting the elegant art magnitudes amid 100% natural, untouched beauty. The small hill soon turned into a colossal building intriguing passers who randomly guessed the project identity. No one knew that this hill was about to attract millions of visitors and tourists. The casino was first opened in December 17, 1959.

Planners endeavored to make the Casino a tourist complex including reception halls, restaurants, a hall of ambassadors for big shows “Salle des Ambassadeurs” – which was considered one of the most opulent and graceful spectacle halls in the world. The biggest hall was then Teatro Lebanon with 1.350-spectator capacity, equipped with advanced technology to accommodate major productions.

Between the sixties and seventies, Casino du Liban played a remarkable development, economic and political role as local, regional and international VIPs rushed to it. The Casino gained considerable influence and imposed itself on the financial scene becoming a cornerstone in the Lebanese economy. Many prominent world personalities visited the Casino among whom the late King Hussein of Jordan, the Shah of Iran Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, Prince Albert of Monaco Omar Sharif and many others.

Financially, the State-distributed Casino revenues contributed in promoting tourism; 25 % had been allocated to hotel investors specifically to improve and upgrade hotels outside the Beirut city, in addition to 25% allocated to constructions that encourage and develop the tourism industry and the summer season. The rest of revenue distribution plan included the allocation of 20% to small municipalities to assist them in their construction and development projects, and 20% were determined by the Ministry of Social Affairs to support charities, in addition to 10% to cover the State control expenditures.

History
Since its inception, the casino attracted nothing but the crème of the crop. It was frequented by Arabs and foreign businessmen alike, especially before 1967-as Lebanon was the gate to the Arab world-; whether for business or leisure, the casino was a pit stop to unwind, relax & tantalize the senses. Furthermore, the Lebanese Diaspora was an essential part of the Casino’s clientele, passionately dedicated to its culture of grandiose events and spectacles; and finally the Lebanese residing in Lebanon whose love and admiration for the casino made it their preferred destination for weddings, big events and other happy happenings. The golden era had just begun…

The Management of Casino du Liban managed to bring the Miss Europe election and its organization in Lebanon for six consecutive years (from 1960 to 1965); it was a world premiere to host the Miss Europe outside Europe, an event that carried a lot of local, regional & international media attention.

And from beauty pageants onwards, the Casino started with exceptional entertainment shows: in 1961 director Charlie Henchis became patron of the Casino’s biggest spectacles, all held at the “Salle des Ambassadeurs” as it was the only flexible space, able to transform with every new show. The Lebanese were marked by the huge spectacle MAIS OUI played for 1158 times during three years and three months in front of 562 788 spectators, making it the play of the century.

The visits of billionaire Aristotle Onassis to Casino Du Liban weren’t any less: his frequent 48 hour trips turned the Casino into a destination of scale, doubling its exposure & fame. Moreover, famous Berkley records launched a book to celebrate Charles Aznavour’s 25 years of performance, mentioning his international concerts held at Paris’ Olympia, New York’s Carnegie Hall, and Lebanese Casino Du Liban.

Casino du Liban had acquired by that time a sentimental value that drastically grew in the hearts and minds of the Lebanese. They warmly carried happy souvenirs, which had become signatures of a golden era making all Lebanese proud to belong to that country that caters taste, refinement & culture to the world. From 1971 till 1983, the Casino struggled to preserve its entity during times of political and economical unrests; sparing no one, the war had catastrophic consequences at all levels.

In 1989, the destruction was massive again; but 1990 brought a wind of change as the Taef accord had put an end to all violence. Gradually, the situation started lightening up: the casino was able to reopen all refurbished and all new!

The casino spent US 50 million to refurbish what was destructed and re-position it to fit the golden image it had bravely acquired: uninterrupted civil works were to put the casino back on track; the challenging project was undertaken by Lebanese contractor Al Mabani.

The bet was won: late bloomers were able to enjoy themselves again as Crystal champagne was flawing unstoppably, delicately served on silver platters by staff beautifully garnished in white gloves. Red carpet, tux & gowns, roses, caviar and martinis, were all promptly for the rendezvous of the casino’s re-inauguration by Lebanese president Elias el Hraoui, on December 4^th, 1996.

The Games

Table games

Those 4 rooms dedicated to table games are the International Room, the Mediterranean Room, Cercle d’Or Room, Salles Privees, which offer a huge variety of games such as American Roulette, Black Jack, Casino Stud Poker, Mini Punto Banco, Lightning Poker, and where a number of 56 game tables operate!

Casino Du Liban Texas Holdem Tournaments Tournament

The Slot machine floor

More than 500 game devices await you in the slots dedicated area. Access is restricted to persons over the age of 21. Besides slot machine, here one can find electronic roulettes, horse racing, poker, electronic and other video games.

Poker Tournaments

In June 2007, Casino du Liban successfully launched the ever awaited Texas Holdem tournaments, which have become a highly recognized event attracting high end players from different neighboring countries. Currently, regular tournaments (freeze out, re-buys & add-ons type) are being held on a weekly basis with entry fees ranging from $100 to $5,000. Additionally, Casino du Liban holds relatively small entry-fee satellite tournaments providing poker players with the opportunity to win seats in high buy-in levels events.

Entertainment

Salle des Ambassadeurs

With an unrivalled prestige, the Salle des Ambassadeurs is an internationally renowned venue that has shaped the reputation of Casino du Liban due to its legendary pre-war performances which immersed the audience in a marvelous world of fantasy and delight. Lavish and elegant, the incomparable venue is one to admire and remember. With a 600 plus seating capacity, a blend of traditional service and a modern-day sophistication, the Salle des Ambassadeurs is the epitome of a new art of living, featuring a series of remarkable performances that have mesmerized the public with grandeur and extravagance.

Theater

The Théâtre du Liban is a veritable temple of art & culture with its fulsome burgundy decor, a 1000 plus seating capacity set to accommodate the creme of the crop and a spacious stage equipped with state-of-the-art audiovisual technology. The Theater has hosted a wide variety of breathtaking performances including local plays, international ballets, operas, Broadway productions, French comedies, jazz concerts and many others.

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La Martingale Restaurant

It is the most important location where you can serve the meal outside gaming area. Located just off the gambling district, La Martingale offers an intercontinental cuisine in a peaceful and melodious ambiance.The lounge like impression of the restaurant allows you to dine with style, in a trendy and tranquil atmosphere.

Casino Du Liban Texas Holdem Tournaments 2020

A modern piano bar and a talented singers duet chant the night away while you gently sip on your favorite champagne and gaze at the magnificent bay of Jounieh. You can also enjoy unforgettable scenery in an outdoor setting throughout the summer season on the extended terrace of the Martingale restaurant.

This is the story of a fairy tale called Casino du Liban that started in 1959 and goes on till date, bringing together the magic and authenticity of the East and the culture of the West, in a mythical marriage of magnificence and beauty, attracting thousands of tourists from the extreme far reaches of the Earth.