The act of living in Zimbabwe is somewhat of a risk at the moment, so you might think that there might be little affinity for supporting Zimbabwe’s gambling dens. Actually, it appears to be working the opposite way, with the critical economic conditions creating a higher ambition to play, to try and locate a fast win, a way from the difficulty.
For many of the people subsisting on the tiny local wages, there are 2 common forms of gambling, the national lottery and Zimbet. Just as with practically everywhere else on the planet, there is a state lotto where the probabilities of succeeding are unbelievably small, but then the prizes are also unbelievably large. It’s been said by market analysts who look at the situation that the majority don’t buy a ticket with the rational assumption of profiting. Zimbet is centered on one of the local or the British football divisions and involves determining the results of future games.
Zimbabwe’s gambling halls, on the other hand, pander to the extremely rich of the country and travelers. Up till recently, there was a very large sightseeing industry, founded on safaris and visits to Victoria Falls. The market collapse and connected bloodshed have carved into this trade.
Among Zimbabwe’s gambling dens, 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 hall, which has just the slots. The Zambesi Valley Hotel and Entertainment Center in Kariba also has just slots. Mutare has the Monclair Hotel and Casino and the Leopard Rock Hotel and Casino, the two of which contain gaming tables, slots and video poker machines, and Victoria Falls houses the Elephant Hills Hotel and Casino and the Makasa Sun Hotel and Casino, each of which has slot machines and blackjack, roulette, and craps tables.
In addition to Zimbabwe’s gambling dens and the aforementioned mentioned lottery and Zimbet (which is very like a pools system), there is a total of 2 horse racing complexes in the nation: the Matabeleland Turf Club in Bulawayo (the second municipality) and the Borrowdale Park in Harare.
Given that the market has shrunk by beyond 40% in recent years and with the connected poverty and conflict that has resulted, it is not understood how well the vacationing industry which supports Zimbabwe’s gambling halls will do in the next few years. How many of the casinos will still be around until things get better is simply unknown.
