EVERETT — A big wager on gambling has turned into a bust, financially, and it ends now with sweeping layoffs for the Kirkland, Wash. company that owns The Great American Casino in South Everett.
According to documents filed by Maverick Washington LLC, 133 employees at Great American Casino, 12715 4th Ave. W. in Everett, will be laid off on November 30–part of Maverick’s larger closure of eight Washington casinos totaling 850 pink-slipped employees.
Maverick Washington LLC filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 2025.
In 2018, after a U.S. Supreme Court ruling allowing states to expand sports betting, Maverick Washington LLC bought 24 cardroom venues in an effort to establish a foothold in the emerging sports betting market.
According to Casino.org, an industry news website, Maverick Washington LLC became the state’s largest nontribal gaming operator. Maverick was betting on Washington lawmakers eventually legalizing commercial sports wagering. Instead, a 2020 state law handed the market exclusively to tribal casinos, with mobile wagering permitted only on tribal lands.
Maverick sued Washington state and the federal government in 2022, arguing the tribal exclusivity created an unconstitutional monopoly. The lawsuit was ultimately dismissed.
Maverick’s financial stake in 24 cardrooms and an inability to offer and capitalize on sports betting hamstrung its revenue opportunities which was then compounded by interest rate increases to pay off debt incurred from all its property acquisition costs.
Casino.org says Maverick’s financial problems were compounded by weakness in the local economy and high operating costs. S&P Global Ratings said in 2024 that layoffs in Washington’s technology sector had affected its customer base, while the company was also burdened by substantial rent obligations.
In required filings with the state for Worker Adjustment and Reduction Notification, Maverick Washington announced that the Great American Casino in South Everett, just west of I-5 and 128th Street S.W. will be closed on November 30, along with seven others in Silverdale, three in Lakewood, Yakima, Kennewick, and Pasco.
“This business closing is not the result of the relocation or contracting out of the employer’s operations or the employees’ positions. The entire Site will be closed.
The majority of the job positions listed in the Great American Casino layoff notification are table game dealer, security, bartender and food service staff.
Maverick Washington noted in its WARN to the Washington State Employment Security Department that, “there could be a potential change of operator and/or owner for the site. If the site is transitioned to a new owner/operator, the above-referenced closure may not occur, or alternatively, the closure could be delayed.” That possibility would be predicated on the bankruptcy case status if a financial lifeline is extended to Maverick Washington.