The prospect of living in Zimbabwe is somewhat of a gamble at the moment, so you could think that there might be very little appetite for supporting Zimbabwe’s gambling halls. In reality, it appears to be working the other way, with the atrocious economic circumstances leading to a bigger desire to play, to try and find a quick win, a way from the crisis.
For most of the locals subsisting on the tiny nearby earnings, there are 2 common forms of betting, the state lotto and Zimbet. Just as with practically everywhere else on the globe, there is a national lottery where the chances of hitting are remarkably small, but then the winnings are also very large. It’s been said by economists who study the subject that most don’t purchase a card with the rational expectation of hitting. Zimbet is based on either the domestic or the United Kingston soccer leagues and involves determining the outcomes of future games.
Zimbabwe’s casinos, on the other shoe, mollycoddle the astonishingly rich of the country and sightseers. Until a short while ago, there was a incredibly substantial tourist industry, centered on nature trips and visits to Victoria Falls. The market collapse and associated crime have cut into this trade.
Among Zimbabwe’s casinos, there are 2 in the capital, Harare, the Carribea Bay Resort and Casino, which has five gaming tables and one armed bandits, and the Plumtree gambling den, which has just the slots. The Zambesi Valley Hotel and Entertainment Center in Kariba also has only slot machines. Mutare contains the Monclair Hotel and Casino and the Leopard Rock Hotel and Casino, the two of which have table games, slot machines and video machines, and Victoria Falls has the Elephant Hills Hotel and Casino and the Makasa Sun Hotel and Casino, the two of which offer gaming machines and tables.
In addition to Zimbabwe’s casinos and the above mentioned lottery and Zimbet (which is very like a pools system), there are a total of 2 horse racing complexes in the country: the Matabeleland Turf Club in Bulawayo (the 2nd metropolis) and the Borrowdale Park in Harare.
Since the market has deflated by more than forty percent in the past few years and with the connected deprivation and violence that has cropped up, it is not known how healthy the tourist industry which supports Zimbabwe’s casinos will do in the near future. How many of the casinos will still be around till things get better is simply unknown.