Lucas Oil Products and WinStar World Casino and Resort in Thackerville, Oklahoma, have announced a partnership revolving around a new 6,500-seat arena expected to open in 2023.
The new venue, called Lucas Oil Live, will be 250,000 square feet and will feature a “flexible” VIP lounge that can adjust its size to fit the needs of different groups, as reported by The Journal Record. The venue is also expected to feature state-of-the-art sound and lighting for events.
“The Lucas Oil Live venue enhances the resort experience for our patrons and music fans alike as we welcome back live entertainment,” said Jack Parkinson, WinStar World Casino and Resort general manager, in a press release. “Our guests will be able to enjoy an electric atmosphere in a venue that’s almost twice the capacity of our previous venue and offers added amenities that enhance the live entertainment experience. The sound and technical capabilities of this new venue enable us to continue attracting the industry’s most popular entertainers.”
The president of Lucas Oil, Morgan Lucas, also voiced his excitement about the partnership with WinStar.
“This opportunity presents us with a chance to reach new audiences of vehicle owners and drivers who can benefit from our products, and we are extremely proud to have the Lucas name associated with WinStar’s new events arena,” said Lucas in the press release.
Dan Boren, secretary of commerce of the Chickasaw Nation, which owns and operates the WinStar World Casino and Resort, said Winstar’s leadership met with a number of people before settling on Lucas Oil.
“We visited with a lot of different people,” said Boren, per The Dallas Morning News. “They’re not just a brand that a lot of people know, but they’re a company that wants to be engaged nationally.”
The concourse of the arena will connect to the new 304-room hotel that opened in January. Additionally, there will be two new bars dedicated to concerts and a new place to eat called Session House Gastropub, as reported by KXII.
There will be three options for visitors to access the venue’s concourse. They can enter from a new exterior parking lot, a sky bridge from a new parking garage, or through the existing hotel and casino, per KXII.
WinStar is also looking to open a new two-story spa with cabanas to help appeal to younger audiences, per The Dallas Morning News. The hope is to draw younger audiences with the new additions while still appealing to traditional gamblers between the ages of 45 and 65.
The spa is currently expected to be a new Spa Habitat location, as reported by Spavelous. Spa Habitat describes itself as “a true leader in the organic spa industry” with locations in Dallas, Plano, and Southlake.
Greg Bohn, CEO of Spa Habitat, said the company is excited about the new partnership and the future with WinStar.
“Spa Habitat is excited to be a part of WinStar World Casino. WinStar has significantly expanded and improved over the last year, and is now one of the five largest casinos in the world,” said Bohn, per Spavelous. “As WinStar World Casino’s transformation continues with the opening of its new, first-class hotel tower this summer, we look forward to providing a relaxing organic retreat to its discerning guests.”
WinStar currently has nearly 400,000 square feet of gaming floor with over 10,000 electronic games. The casino also features 100 table games and a 55-table poker room, according to its website. The location boasts a 65,000-square-foot convention center and two 18-hole golf courses.
