Betting in Mexico City

Mexico City is a “Federal District” of Mexico, not part of any of its 31 states. Instead, it belongs to the federation as a whole, serving as the nation’s capital and its largest city, with a population of some 21.2 million residents. Indeed, it is the largest Spanish-speaking city in the world.

Native Aztecs occupied the area that is now Mexico City as long as seven centuries ago and made it the centre of their empire. Although the city was destroyed by conquering Spaniards in the early 16th century, it survived as a colonial outpost focused on trade and gradually reasserted it prominence. Following Mexico’s successful war of independence in 1821, the Federal District was established, modeled after Washington and the Disrict of Columbia in the United States.

Today, Mexico City is comprised of 16 boroughs. Its downtown area is noted for specialized retailers that offer goods at low coats, such as streets lined with competing lighting stores or hardware shops, as well as massive markets like the Mercado La Merced, where thousands of items are sold, and Mercado de Jamaica, specialising in fresh flowers. There is a Chinatown area on Calle Dolores, and the Zona Rosa neighborhood is home to Mexico City’s Koreatown.

When it comes to gambling opportunities, two large entertainment companies dominate the scene. One of them is the Caliente Group of sportsbooks, locally owned and operated by Hipódromo de Agua Caliente, S.A. de C.V. Although their main focus is bookmaking, gaming machines are made available to guests at their locations and a loyalty programme called “Club Caliente” is available for frequent players.

Among the Caliente Casino properties in Mexico City are the Bosques branch on Bosque de Las Lomas, the Interlomas Plaza Magnocentro venue on Boulevard Magnocentro and the Ecatepec Plaza Aragón on Avenida Carlos Hank Gonzalez. A fourth location can be found in the Benito Juarez Borough. It’s on Calle Nueva York and called the Caliente Casino – Meneo.

Vying for customers with the Caliente Group is the Emotion Casino Group. Their properties feature bars and restaurants in addition to betting opportunities. The Emotion Casino – Cuitlahuac is the largest of the branches. Located on Avenida Granjas in the Azcapotzalco Borough, it offers 300 gaming machines on its casino floor, which is open from 10am daily until 3am on Sunday through Thursday and 5am on Friday and Saturday.

Slightly smaller is the Emotion Casino – Patriotismo in the Benito Juarez Borough. Located on Avenida Patriotismo, it features 250 gaming machines in operation daily from 10am till 5am. Then there is the Emotion Casino – Hamburgo in the Zona Rosa area of the Cuauhtémoc Borough, open Sunday through Thursday from 10am to 3am and Fridays and Saturdays from 10am till 5am.

Also located in the Benito Juarez Borough on Avenida de los Insurgentes Sur is the PlayCity Casino – Armand. It is owned and operated by the PlayCity division of Apuestas Internacionales S.A. de C.v., the biggest operator of gaming facilities in the country. Offered here are bingo, sports betting and machine gaming—what the press have dubbed “casino lite.”

Mexico City also has its own horse racing facility, the Hipódromo de las Américas located on Avenida Industria Militar in the Miguel Hidalgo Borough on the northwest side of the city. The track is used primarily for quarter horse racing, and the property has five restaurants—Angus for American cuisine, 1943 doe Mexican fare, Zipango for Italian dishes, Casa Bacardi featuring intercontinental food and La Terraza with its buffet.

Published on: 06/04/2013

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