New Leeds '˜supercasino' officially named as recruitment gets underway for 200 jobs

The casino, which will be the third largest in the UK when it opens, will form part of the same development that is bringing the city a John Lewis department store.

Its owners announced today that the first of the more than 200 jobs it is to create had already vbeen filed.

The 50,000 sq ft entertainment and gaming destination, which is the first and only ‘super casino’ in the north, will have a capacity of 1,400 when it is completed and be one of the biggest entertainment venues in the city.

As well as gaming, it will have wall-to-wall screens for watching sport, a restaurant, function space and two bars including one selling craft beer, ales and stouts.

It will also boast one the biggest poker rooms in the country, alongside 24 gaming tables, 140 slot machines as well as 80 electronic table games.

Andrew Herd, chief executive of Global Gaming Ventures, the developer of the Victoria Gate Casino, said: “This is a unique venue on a grand scale unlike anything seen before in the north of England and we are delighted to be unveiling our name, our look and our first employees.

“Although this is a venue in the heart of Leeds, staffed by people from the city, our customers will not just be Leeds-based – evidence shows us that a venue like a super casino attracts visitors from the region and beyond, bringing investment into the area.

“We are creating a fantastic venue in the heart of the city and adding another new and exciting destination to the city’s great line up of entertainment venues.”

The gaming company had to make an upfront payment of £1m to the council, which will be spent on various charity initiatives. It also has to hand over £450,000 per annum to the council, with money potentially going to ‘anti-poverty- projects and support networks for gambling addicts.

Robin Dobson, director of Retail Development at Hammerson, the firm behind the whole Victoria Gate development said: “The Victoria Gate Casino is set to provide a valuable boost for the local economy with the creation of more than 200 jobs, something that the Victoria Gate team is passionate about. We are looking forward to welcoming the casino later this year.”

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