Will Visions of a Vegas on the Manzanares Materialize?

After beating out perennial rival Barcelona in the battle for Adelson's affections, Madrid is set to become the home to a Las-Vegas-style casino strip - dubbed "EuroVegas" - that will be home to "half a dozen casinos and 12 huge hotels." According to Tremlett, "The project is expected to be half the size of the famous Las Vegas strip, the four-mile stretch of megacasinos in Nevada. It is also expected to be split into a dozen sectors, built one by one, eventually offering some 36,000 hotel beds, although Adelson held back from confirming details of the project on Friday."

Among the missing details are how Adelson intends to finance the project, how he plans to circumvent certain local planning laws, and where, specifically, it will be located.

"While the deal may bring jobs to a country suffering 25% unemployment," notes Tremlett, "it has provoked outrage among an unlikely coalition of opponents, including local Catholic bishops and the indignado protest movement."