The immortal line, "I don't think we're in Kansas anymore, Toto" could carry more weight in the near future now that major Las Vegas casino developers, Las Vegas Sands Corp. and Pinnacle Entertainment, announced plans to obtain casino gaming licenses in the recently liberated gambling market of Kansas. The two gaming giants will by vying for a single license that will allow the operation of a large-scale casino resort in Wyandotte County, which is suburb in Kansas City sitting on the border between Kansas and Missouri.

Ever since State legislators in Kansas passed legislation permitting Class III gaming in four destinations, including Kansas City, Dodge City, Wichita and southeastern Kansas, casino operators have been eyeballing the Midwestern destination with prospects of profiting on the gambling hungry resident who have already proven themselves in nearby Kansas City.

Not your typical destination, Kansas lawmakers decided to bring resort gambling destinations to the Sunflower State after they realized how much tax money they were shorting themselves out of - tax money being generated from the flocks of Kansas citizens crossing the state border to gamble in Missouri and at tribal casinos in Oklahoma. Now, Kansas has become one of the most burgeoning domestic gaming opportunities in the U.S. ever since Pennsylvania passed major legislation allowing for five new casino gaming licenses.

There is a very good chance that more casino operators will enter the race to obtain one of the gaming licenses in Kansas. Pinnacle and Sands are both optimistic they will be granted the license in Wyandotte County, but will have to wait until December for a final decision to be made. Both casino operators have excellent track records operating casinos around the world, while Sands was the only major Las Vegas based operator to be issued a license in Pennsylvania.