UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20549

FORM 10-K

(Mark One)

☒ ANNUAL REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

For the fiscal year ended December 31, 2020

OR

☐ TRANSITION REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

For the transition period           to           

Commission File No. 001-36629

CAESARS ENTERTAINMENT, INC.

(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)

Delaware

(State or other jurisdiction of

incorporation or organization)

46-3656781

(I.R.S. Employer

Identification No.)

100 West Liberty Street, 12th Floor

Reno, Nevada 89501

(Address of principal executive offices)

Telephone: (775) 328-0100

(Registrant’s telephone number, including area code)

Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:

Title of each class	Trading symbol	Name of each exchange on which registered
Common Stock, $.00001, par value	CZR	NASDAQ Stock Market

Securities registered pursuant to section 12(g) of the Act:  None

Indicate by check mark if the registrant is a well-known seasoned issuer, as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act.    Yes  ☒    No  ☐

Indicate by check mark if the registrant is not required to file reports pursuant to Section 13 or Section 15(d) of the Act.    Yes  ☐    No  ☒

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant (1) has filed reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to file such reports), and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days.    Yes  ☒    No  ☐

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has submitted electronically every Interactive Data File required to be submitted pursuant to Rule 405 of Regulation S-T (§232.405 of this chapter) during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to submit such files).    Yes  ☒    No  ☐

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, a smaller reporting company, or emerging growth company. See the definitions of “large accelerated filer,” “accelerated filer,” “smaller reporting company” and “emerging growth company” in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act.

Large accelerated filer	☒	Accelerated filer	☐	Non-accelerated filer	☐
Smaller reporting company	☐	Emerging growth company	☐

If an emerging growth company, indicate by checkmark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act. ☐

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has filed a report on and attestation to its management’s assessment of the effectiveness of its internal control over financial reporting under Section 404(b) of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (15 U.S.C. 7262(b)) by the registered public accounting firm that prepared or issued its audit report. ☒

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act).    Yes  ☐    No  ☒

The aggregate market value of the common stock held by non-affiliates of the Registrant was $3.6 billion at June 30, 2020 based upon the closing price for the shares of CZR’s common stock as reported by The Nasdaq Stock Market.

As of February 22, 2021, there were 208,277,434 outstanding shares of the Registrant’s Common Stock, net of treasury shares.

Documents Incorporated by Reference

Portions of the Registrant’s definitive proxy statement to be filed with the Commission pursuant to Regulation 14A in connection with the Registrant’s Annual Meeting of Stockholders (the “Proxy Statement”) are incorporated by reference into Part III of this report. Such Proxy Statement will be filed with the Commission not later than 120 days after the conclusion of the Registrant’s fiscal year ended December 31, 2020.

CAESARS ENTERTAINMENT, INC.

ANNUAL REPORT FOR THE YEAR ENDED DECEMBER 31, 2020

TABLE OF CONTENTS

		Page
Part I
Item 1.	Business	3
Item 1A.	Risk Factors	14
Item 1B.	Unresolved Staff Comments	26
Item 2.	Properties	26
Item 3.	Legal Proceedings	28
Item 4.	Mine Safety Disclosures	28
Part II
Item 5.	Market for Registrants’ Common Equity, Related Stockholder Matters and Issuer Purchases of Equity Securities	29
Item 6.	Selected Financial Data	30
Item 7.	Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations	31
Item 7A.	Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures About Market Risk	57
Item 8.	Financial Statements and Supplementary Data	58
Item 9.	Changes in and Disagreements with Accountants on Accounting and Financial Disclosure	58
Item 9A.	Controls and Procedures	58
Item 9B.	Other Information	61
Part III
Item 10.	Directors, Executive Officers and Corporate Governance	62
Item 11.	Executive Compensation	62
Item 12.	Security Ownership of Certain Beneficial Owners and Management and Related Stockholder Matters	62
Item 13.	Certain Relationships and Related Transactions, and Director Independence	62
Item 14.	Principal Accounting Fees and Services	62
Part IV
Item 15.	Financial Statement Schedules	63
EXHIBITS		64
SIGNATURES		69
INDEX TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS OF CAESARS ENTERTAINMENT, INC.		70

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PART I

Item 1.    Business.

Caesars Entertainment, Inc., a Delaware corporation formerly known as Eldorado Resorts, Inc. (“ERI” or “Eldorado”), is referred to as the “Company,” “CEI,” “Caesars,” or the “Registrant,” and together with its subsidiaries may also be referred to as “we,” “us” or “our.”

We also refer to (i) our Consolidated Financial Statements as our “Financial Statements,” (ii) our Consolidated Statements of Operations and Consolidated Statements of Comprehensive Income (Loss) as our “Statements of Operations,” (iii) our Consolidated Balance Sheets as our “Balance Sheets,” and (iv) our Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows as our “Statements of Cash Flows.” References to numbered “Notes” refer to Notes to our Consolidated Financial Statements included in Item 8.

Overview

We are a geographically diversified gaming and hospitality company that was founded in 1973 by the Carano family with the opening of the Eldorado Hotel Casino in Reno, Nevada. Our primary source of revenue is generated by gaming operations, and we utilize our hotels, restaurants, bars, entertainment, racing, sportsbook offerings, retail shops and other services to attract customers to our properties.

We lease certain real property assets from third parties, including GLP Capital, L.P., the operating partnership of Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. (“GLPI”) and VICI Properties L.P., a Delaware limited partnership (“VICI”).

Significant Transactions in 2020

On July 20, 2020, we completed the merger with Caesars Entertainment Corporation (“Former Caesars”) pursuant to which Former Caesars became our wholly-owned subsidiary (the “Merger”). As a result of the Merger, we currently own, lease or manage an aggregate of 54 domestic properties in 16 states with approximately 54,600 slot machines, video lottery terminals (“VLTs”) and e-tables, approximately 3,200 table games and approximately 47,700 hotel rooms as of December 31, 2020. We also have international operations in five countries outside of the U.S. In addition, we have other domestic and international properties that are authorized to use the brands and marks of Caesars Entertainment, Inc., as well as other non-gaming properties. Upon completion of our previously announced sales, or expected sales of certain gaming properties, we expect to continue to own, lease or manage 48 properties. See Item 2, “Properties,” for more information about our properties.

In connection with the Merger, Caesars Entertainment Corporation changed its name to “Caesars Holdings, Inc.” and Eldorado Resorts, Inc. converted into a Delaware corporation and changed its name to “Caesars Entertainment, Inc.” In addition, effective as of July 21, 2020 our ticker symbol on the NASDAQ Stock Market changed from “ERI” to “CZR”. In connection with the Merger, we also entered into a Master Transaction Agreement (the “MTA”) with VICI, pursuant to which, among other things, we agreed to consummate certain sale and leaseback transactions and amend certain lease agreements with VICI and/or its affiliates with respect to certain property described in the MTA. See Item 7 for further discussion of the Merger and Acquisitions Related Activities.

On July 1, 2020, the Company completed the sales of Isle of Capri Casino Kansas City (“Kansas City”) and Lady Luck Casino Vicksburg (“Vicksburg”). On September 30, 2020, the Company completed the sale of Harrah’s Reno.

On April 24, 2020, the Company entered into a definitive purchase agreement with Twin River Worldwide Holdings, Inc. (“Twin River” or subsequently, “Bally’s Corporation”) and certain of its affiliates for the sale of the equity interests of Eldorado Resort Casino Shreveport Joint Venture and Columbia Properties Tahoe, LLC, the entities that hold Eldorado Resort Casino Shreveport (“Eldorado Shreveport”) and MontBleu Casino Resort & Spa (“MontBleu”), for aggregate consideration of $155 million, subject to a customary working capital adjustment. The definitive agreement provides that the consummation of the sale is subject to satisfaction of customary conditions, including receipt of required regulatory approvals. The sale of Eldorado Shreveport closed on December 23, 2020 for $140 million, subject to a customary working capital adjustment, and the sale of MontBleu is expected to close in the first half of 2021.

On September 3, 2020, the Company and VICI entered into an agreement to sell Harrah’s Louisiana Downs Casino, Racing & Entertainment (“Harrah’s Louisiana Downs”) to Rubico Acquisition Corp. for $22 million, subject to a customary working capital adjustment, which proceeds will be split between the Company and VICI. The sale is subject to satisfaction of customary conditions, including receipt of required regulatory approvals and is expected to close in the first half of 2021.

In connection with its review of the Merger, the Indiana Gaming Commission determined on July 16, 2020 that, as a condition to their approval of the Merger, the Company is required to enter into agreements to divest of three properties within the state of Indiana in order to avoid undue economic concentration. As discussed below, the Company has entered into agreements to sell

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Tropicana Evansville (“Evansville”) and Caesars Southern Indiana. The Company plans to enter into an agreement to divest Horseshoe Hammond prior to December 31, 2021, as the deadline was extended by the Indiana Gaming Commission.

On October 27, 2020, the Company entered into an agreement to sell Evansville to GLPI and Twin River for $480 million in cash, subject to a customary working capital adjustment. The sale is subject to satisfaction of customary conditions, including receipt of required regulatory approvals and is expected to close in mid-2021.

Also on October 27, 2020, in conjunction with the execution of the agreement to sell Evansville, the Company’s subsidiaries, Isle Casino Bettendorf and Isle Casino Hotel Waterloo (collectively, the “Exchanging Subsidiaries”), entered into an Exchange Agreement with GLPI pursuant to which the Exchanging Subsidiaries agreed to transfer the real estate relating to the Isle Casino Bettendorf and Isle Casino Hotel Waterloo to GLPI in exchange for the real estate relating to Evansville. The exchange transaction closed on December 18, 2020 and as a result of the lease being classified as a finance obligation the exchange was accounted for as a debt modification. As a result of the exchange, the real estate relating to Evansville was removed from the master lease with GLPI that we entered into in connection with the acquisition of Tropicana (the “GLPI Master Lease”) and the real estate relating to Isle Casino Bettendorf and Isle Casino Hotel Waterloo is now subject to the GLPI Master Lease.

On November 18, 2020, the sale of Bally's Atlantic City to Bally’s Corporation was completed for $25 million. The proceeds from the sale were split between the Company and VICI, and the Company received $5 million of net proceeds. In addition, on October 9, 2020, we reached an agreement to sell the Bally’s brand to Bally’s Corporation for $20 million, while retaining the right to use the brand within Bally’s Las Vegas into perpetuity. We agreed to reimburse Bally’s Corporation $30 million for capital expenditures required at Bally’s Atlantic City and recorded a liability within Accrued other liabilities and recorded a charge to Discontinued operations, net of income taxes. We expect that such commitment will be satisfied by adjusting obligations under certain sportsbook operating agreements between Bally’s Corporation and the Company following our expected acquisition of William Hill.

On December 1, 2020, the Company entered into an agreement to sell the Belle of Baton Rouge (“Baton Rouge”) to CQ Holding Company, Inc. Pursuant to the terms of the GLPI Master Lease, Baton Rouge will be removed from the GLPI Master Lease, and the rent payments to GLPI will remain unchanged. GLPI will retain ownership of the real estate of Baton Rouge. The transaction is expected to close in mid-2021 and is subject to regulatory approvals and other customary closing conditions.

On December 24, 2020, the Company entered into an agreement to sell Caesars Southern Indiana to the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians (“EBCI”) for $250 million, subject to a customary working capital adjustment. Our annual payments to VICI under the Regional Lease (as defined below) will decline by $33 million upon closing of the transaction. Additionally, effective as of the closing of the transaction, the Company and EBCI will enter into a long-term agreement for the continued use of the Caesars brand and Caesars Rewards loyalty program at Caesars Southern Indiana. The sale is subject to satisfaction of customary conditions, including receipt of required regulatory approvals and is expected to close in the third quarter of 2021.

Former Caesars’ properties, including Harrah’s Louisiana Downs, Caesars Southern Indiana, Horseshoe Hammond, Harrah’s Reno, Caesars UK group, including Emerald Resort & Casino, and Bally’s Atlantic City, have met held for sale criteria as of the date of the closing of the Merger. The sales of these properties have or are expected to close within one year from the date of the closing of the Merger and the properties are classified as discontinued operations.

Proposed Acquisition of William Hill

Since January 29, 2019, the Company has held 13 million ordinary shares of William Hill plc and a 20% ownership interest in William Hill US Holdco, Inc. (“William Hill US”), its United States subsidiary (together, “William Hill”). Additionally, the Company receives a profit share from the operations of sports betting and other gaming activities associated with the Company’s properties. See below for further detail.

On September 30, 2020, we announced that we had reached an agreement with William Hill plc on the terms of a recommended cash acquisition pursuant to which we would acquire the entire issued and to be issued share capital (other than shares owned by us or held in treasury) of William Hill plc, in an all-cash transaction of approximately £2.9 billion, or $3.7 billion. The transaction is conditioned on, among other things, the approval of William Hill plc shareholders, which was received on November 19, 2020, and receipt of required regulatory approvals. The Company announced the early termination of the waiting period under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act of 1976 (“HSR Act”) relating to the proposed combination with William Hill plc. A final UK court hearing is scheduled for the last week of March 2021 and we expect to close the acquisition shortly thereafter. See Note 1 for further details.

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COVID-19 Public Health Emergency

In January 2020, an outbreak of a new strain of coronavirus (“COVID-19”) was identified and has since spread throughout much of the world, including the United States. All of our casino properties were temporarily closed for the period from mid-March 2020 through mid-May 2020 due to orders issued by various government agencies and tribal bodies as part of certain precautionary measures intended to help slow the spread of the COVID-19 public health emergency. On May 15, 2020, we began reopening our properties and have resumed certain operations at all of our properties as of December 31, 2020, with the exception of additional temporary closures of Caesars Windsor, Harrah’s Philadelphia, and our properties in Illinois. Subsequently, Harrah’s Philadelphia and our properties in Illinois have reopened. The COVID-19 public health emergency has had a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations for the year ended December 31, 2020. We continued to pay our full-time employees through April 10, 2020, including tips and tokens. Effective April 11, 2020, we furloughed approximately 90% of our employees, implemented salary reductions and committed to continue to provide benefits to our employees during the duration of their respective furlough period. A portion of our workforce has returned to service as the properties have resumed with limited capacities and in compliance with operating restrictions imposed by governmental or tribal orders, directives, and guidelines. Due to the impact of the ongoing COVID-19 public health emergency on our results of operations, we obtained waivers on the financial covenants in Former Caesars credit facility agreement and the GLPI Master Lease. Furthermore, we obtained waivers in relation to annual capital expenditure requirements under the leases with VICI.

Business Operations

Our consolidated business is composed of five complementary businesses that reinforce, cross-promote, and build upon each other: casino, food and beverage, hotel, casino management services, retail and entertainment and other business operations, including online sports betting and iGaming.

Casino Operations

Our casino operations generate revenues from approximately 54,600 slot machines and 3,200 table games, including poker, as well as other games such as keno, and race and online sportsbooks, all of which comprised approximately 67% of our total net revenues in 2020. Slot revenues generate the majority of our casino revenues, particularly in our properties located outside of Las Vegas and Atlantic City.

Food and Beverage Operations

Our food and beverage operations generate revenues from our dining venues, bars, nightclubs, and lounges located throughout our casinos, as well as room service in our hotels, and represented approximately 10% of our total net revenues in 2020. Many of our properties include several dining options, ranging from upscale dining experiences to moderately-priced restaurants.

Hotel Operations

Hotel operations generate revenues from hotel stays at our properties in our approximately 47,700 guest rooms and suites worldwide and represented approximately 13% of our total net revenues in 2020. Our properties operate at various price and service points, allowing us to host a variety of casino guests, who are visiting our properties for gaming and other casino entertainment options, and non-casino guests who are visiting our properties for other purposes, such as vacation travel or conventions.

Management Services

We earn revenue from fees paid for the management of five domestic casinos. Managed properties represent Caesars-branded properties where we provide staffing and management services under management agreements.

Entertainment and Other Non-Gaming Operations

We provide a variety of retail and entertainment offerings at our properties. We operate various entertainment venues across the United States, including the Colosseum at Caesars Palace and Zappos Theater at Planet Hollywood. These award-winning entertainment venues are scheduled to host prominent headliners, such as Sting, Usher, Donny Osmond, Morrissey and the Scorpions.

The LINQ Promenade is an open-air dining, entertainment, and retail development located between The LINQ Hotel & Casino and Flamingo Las Vegas, which features The High Roller, a 550-foot observation wheel, and Fly LINQ, the first and only zipline on the Las Vegas Strip. The retail stores offer guests a wide range of options from high-end brands and accessories to souvenirs and decorative items.

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CAESARS FORUM is a 550,000 square-foot conference center located at the center of the Las Vegas Strip. CAESARS FORUM features 300,000 square feet of flexible meeting space, the two largest pillarless ballrooms in the world, LEED silver-rating, and FORUM Plaza, the first 100,000 square-foot outdoor meeting and event space in Las Vegas. Though currently available for use, COVID-19 related restrictions have limited our ability to utilize the convention center and meeting space.

Online Sports Betting and iGaming

In September 2018, we entered into a 25-year agreement, which became effective in January 2019, with William Hill pursuant to which we (i) granted to William Hill the right to conduct betting activities, including operating sportsbooks, in retail channels and under our first skin and third skin for online channels with respect to our current and future properties located in the United States and the territories and possessions of the United States, including Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands and (ii) agreed that William Hill will have the right to conduct real money online gaming activities utilizing our second skin available with respect to properties in such territories. We received a 20% ownership interest in William Hill US as well as 13 million ordinary shares of William Hill plc in exchange for the right to the use of certain skins (described above). The fair value of the William Hill US and William Hill plc shares received has been deferred and is recognized as revenue on a straight-line basis over the 25-year term of the agreement. The amortization of deferred revenues associated with our equity interests is included in other revenue within our Corporate and Other segment. Additionally, we receive a profit share from the operations of betting and other online gaming activities operated under our licenses. See Note 5.

As mentioned above, we have entered into an agreement with William Hill plc on the terms of a recommended cash acquisition and the consummation of the acquisition is conditioned on receipt of required regulatory approvals. Currently William Hill operates 37 sportsbooks at our properties in eight states and, following the acquisition, Caesars and William Hill will be live with sports wagering across 15 U.S. states plus the district of Columbia.

Additionally, the post-merger entity will operate regulated online real money gaming businesses in four states, Nevada, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and Michigan, and continue to leverage the World Series of Poker (“WSOP”) brand, and license the WSOP trademarks for a variety of products and services. Players in New Jersey can play over 700 casino games including slots, table games, and video poker and we expect to similarly ramp the product offering in Pennsylvania and Michigan.

Extensive usage of digital platforms and growing bettor demand are driving the market for online sports betting platforms in the United States. We believe that the proposed acquisition of William Hill positions us to address this growing market.

In January 2021, we also made a strategic investment into a daily fantasy sports platform, as discussed below, which complements our strong mobile sports and gaming network.

Sports Brand Partnerships — We continue to solidify local and national partnerships that align our casinos, resorts and brands with sports fans. In 2019, we announced high-profile exclusive sports entertainment partnerships with the NFL, making Caesars the first-ever “Official Casino Sponsor” in the history of the league. This historic partnership combines the NFL’s legendary events with our properties to bring unique experiences to Caesars patrons. This includes exclusive rights to use NFL trademarks in the U.S. and U.K. to promote our properties, also enabling Caesars to host exclusive special events and experiences. For example, in April 2019, Caesars and the NFL hosted the NFL Alumni Las Vegas Draft Party with exclusive fan access to an autograph session with legendary NFL players, giveaways and an open bar at the LINQ Hotel & Casino. Caesars will continue to host brand activations at prominent, high-profile NFL events, including the NFL Draft, NFL playoffs, and the Super Bowl during this multi-year partnership.

Additionally, on August 24, 2020, the Company and ESPN opened a new ESPN-branded studio at the LINQ Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas where ESPN broadcasts sports betting-themed content and other programming. Under the agreement, Caesars has been designated as ESPN’s “Official Odds Provider,” ESPN produces and distributes certain content across ESPN’s media platforms that features Caesars branding, and Caesars purchases advertising across ESPN and its affiliated advertising platforms, among other terms. On September 10, 2020, the Company entered into a multi-year agreement with ESPN including link integrations from ESPN’s website and app to sportsbooks with our sports betting partner, William Hill.

Market Activities

Other Developments

Our proposed acquisition of William Hill represents a compelling opportunity to improve the offering and experience for the customer by providing access to Caesars’ brand and highly regarded loyalty program (which had approximately 60 million members at the end of 2020). The combined company will also be afforded the ability to access our extensive and pre-existing relationships with various sports teams and events including being the Official Casino Sponsor of the NFL. Further, the combined company’s market access across the U.S. would be increased and would benefit from a broad network of sportsbook

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locations.

In addition to the proposed acquisition, in January 2021, we made a strategic investment in the daily fantasy sports platform with operations across seven professional sports in more than 35 states. The investment complements our strong mobile sports and gaming network by adding an innovative fantasy sports platform, allowing more options to play both online and in-person, and is expected to be tied to Caesars Rewards to permit players to earn credits redeemable for rewards and experiences, either online or at one of our casino resorts nationwide.

Trends

COVID-19 — The extent of the ongoing and future effects of the COVID-19 public health emergency on our business and the casino resort industry generally is uncertain, but we expect that it will continue to have a significant impact on our business, results of operations and financial condition. The extent and duration of the impact of COVID-19 will ultimately depend on future developments, including but not limited to, the duration and severity of the outbreak, business recovery trends, restrictions on operations imposed by governmental authorities, the potential for authorities reimposing stay at home orders or additional restrictions in response to continued developments with the COVID-19 public health emergency, the efficacy and availability of vaccines, our ability to adapt to evolving operating procedures, the impact on consumer demand and discretionary spending, the length of time it takes for demand to return and our ability to adjust our cost structures for the duration of the outbreak’s effect on our operations.

Online Betting and Gaming — Online betting and gaming is a rapidly developing sector of the e-commerce industry and we believe the digital segment of the global betting and gaming industry will continue to grow in popularity and consumer confidence. The market for online betting platforms is being driven by increased use of digital processes and global, growing bettor demand. We anticipate that the United States market will begin to have a strong and steady uptake in active wagers as state-by-state legislation in the United States continues to evolve in response to recent legislation resulting in new opportunities in the United States sports betting market. The extent and future effects of online betting and gaming on our casino properties is uncertain but we expect that our online betting and gaming offering will be complementary to our brick-and-mortar casino business.

Competition

The casino entertainment business is highly competitive. The industry is comprised of a diverse group of competitors that vary considerably in size and geographic diversity, quality of facilities and amenities available, marketing and growth strategies, and financial condition. In most regions, we compete directly with other casino facilities operating in the immediate and surrounding areas. In Las Vegas, our largest jurisdiction, competition is expected to increase in the coming years. For example, the Genting Group is developing a casino and hotel called Resorts World Las Vegas, which is expected to open in summer 2021. It is located on the northern end of the Las Vegas Strip. In response to changing trends, Las Vegas operators have been focused on expanding their non-gaming offerings, including upgrades to hotel rooms, new food and beverage offerings, and new entertainment offerings. There have also been proposals for other large scale non-gaming development projects in Las Vegas by various other developers. Our Las Vegas Strip hotels and casinos also compete, in part, with each other.

In recent years, many casino operators, including us, have been reinvesting in existing facilities, developing or rebranding new casinos or complementary facilities, and acquiring established facilities. These reinvestment and expansion efforts combined with aggressive marketing strategies by us and many of our competitors have resulted in increased competition in many regions. As companies have completed new expansion projects, supply has grown at a faster pace than demand in some areas. The expansion of properties and entertainment venues into new jurisdictions also presents competitive issues. Atlantic City, in particular, has experienced significant competitive pressure primarily due to the addition of gaming and room capacity associated with the expansion of gaming in Maryland, New York, and Pennsylvania, as well as the opening of new properties. This has resulted in several casino closings in recent years. Other examples of expected increases in competition in the markets include the recent legalization of casinos at licensed horse race tracks in Nebraska in November 2020 and the opening of Live! Casino and Hotel Philadelphia in February 2021.

Our properties also compete with legalized gaming from casinos located on Native American tribal lands. While the competitive impact on operations in Las Vegas from the continued growth of Native American gaming establishments in California remains uncertain, the proliferation of gaming in California and other areas located in the same regions as our properties could have an adverse effect on our results of operations. In some instances, particularly in the case of Native American casinos, our competitors pay lower taxes or no taxes. In addition, certain states have legalized, and others may legalize, casino gaming in specific areas, including metropolitan areas from which we traditionally attract customers. These factors create additional challenges for us in competing for customers and accessing cash flow or financing to fund improvements for our casino and entertainment products that enable us to remain competitive.

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We also compete with other non-gaming resorts and vacation areas, various other entertainment businesses, and other forms of gaming, such as state lotteries, on-track and off-track wagering, video lottery terminals, and card parlors. Our non-gaming offerings also compete with other retail facilities, amusement attractions, food and beverage offerings, and entertainment venues. Internet gaming and sports betting also create additional competition for our brick-and-mortar operations.

Resources Material to Business

Rewards Programs

We believe Caesars Rewards, which we acquired in 2020 as a result of the Merger, enables us to compete more effectively and capture a larger share of our customers’ entertainment spending when they travel among regions versus that of a standalone property, which is core to our cross-market strategy. Legacy ERI loyalty club members are able to link their account to Caesars Rewards.

Members who have joined Caesars Rewards can earn Reward Credits for qualifying gaming activity and qualifying hotel, dining and retail spending at all Caesars-affiliated properties in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, and Dubai. Members can also earn additional Reward Credits when they use their Caesars Rewards VISA credit card or make a purchase through a Caesars Rewards partner. Members can redeem their earned Reward Credits with Caesars for hotel amenities, casino free play and other items such as merchandise, gift cards, and travel.

Caesars Rewards is structured in tiers (designated as Gold, Platinum, Diamond or Seven Stars), each with increasing member benefits and privileges. Members are provided promotional offers based on their Tier Level, their engagement with Caesars-affiliated properties, aspects of their casino gaming play, and their preferred spending choices outside of gaming. Member information is also used in connection with various marketing promotions, including campaigns involving direct mail, email, our websites, mobile devices, social media, and interactive slot machines.

Intellectual Property and Resources

We use a variety of trade names, service marks, trademarks, patents and copyrights in our operations and believe that we have all the licenses necessary to conduct our continuing operations. The development of intellectual property is part of our overall business strategy. We regard our intellectual property to be an important element of our success. We have registered several service marks, trademarks, patents and copyrights with the United States Patent and Trademark Office or otherwise acquired the licenses to use those which are material to conduct our business. We also own patents relating to unique casino games. While our business as a whole is not substantially dependent on any one patent, trademark, copyright, we seek to establish and maintain our proprietary rights in our business operations and technology through the use of patents, trademarks, copyrights, and trade secret laws. We file applications for and obtain patents, trademarks, and copyrights in the United States and foreign countries where we believe filing for such protection is appropriate, including United States and foreign patent applications covering certain proprietary technology of Caesars Enterprise Services, LLC (“CES”). We also seek to maintain our trade secrets and confidential information by nondisclosure policies and through the use of appropriate confidentiality agreements. CES’ United States patents have varying expiration dates.

We have not applied for the registration of all of our trademarks, copyrights, proprietary technology, or other intellectual property rights, as the case may be, and may not be successful in obtaining all intellectual property rights for which we have applied. Despite our efforts to protect our proprietary rights, parties may infringe upon our intellectual property and use information that we regard as proprietary, and our rights may be invalidated or unenforceable. The laws of some foreign countries do not protect proprietary rights or intellectual property to as great of an extent as do the laws of the United States. In addition, others may independently develop substantially equivalent intellectual property.

We own or have the right to use proprietary rights to a number of trademarks that we consider, along with the associated name recognition, to be valuable to our business, including Eldorado, Silver Legacy, Isle, Lady Luck, Tropicana, Circus Circus, Caesars, Flamingo, Harrah’s, Horseshoe, Paris, Caesars Rewards, WSOP, and licenses for the Planet Hollywood trademark used in connection with the Planet Hollywood in Las Vegas and for the Bally’s trademark used in connection with Bally’s Las Vegas in Las Vegas.

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Industry Overview

See Item 7, “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations.” See also Exhibit 99.1, “Gaming Overview,” to this Annual Report on Form 10-K, which is incorporated herein by reference.

Seasonality

We believe that business at our regional properties outside of Las Vegas is subject to seasonality, including seasonality based on the weather in the markets in which they operate and the travel habits of visitors. Business in our properties can also fluctuate due to specific holidays or other significant events, such as Easter (particularly when the holiday falls in a different quarter than the prior year), the WSOP tournament (with respect to our Las Vegas properties), city-wide conventions, a large sporting event or a concert, or visits by our premium players. We also believe that any seasonality, holiday, or other significant event may affect our various properties or regions differently.

Gaming Licenses and Governmental Regulations

The gaming and racing industries are highly regulated, and we must maintain our licenses and pay gaming taxes to continue our operations. We are subject to extensive regulation under laws, rules and supervisory procedures primarily in the jurisdictions where our facilities are located or docked. These laws, rules and regulations generally concern the responsibility, financial stability and characters of the owners, managers, and persons with financial interests in the gaming operations. If additional gaming regulations are adopted in a jurisdiction in which we operate, such regulations could impose restrictions or costs that could have a significant adverse effect on us. From time to time, various proposals have been introduced in legislatures of jurisdictions in which we have operations that, if enacted, could adversely affect the tax, regulatory, operational or other aspects of the gaming industry and us. We do not know whether or when such legislation will be enacted. Gaming companies are currently subject to significant state and local taxes and fees in addition to normal federal and state corporate income taxes, and such taxes and fees are subject to increase at any time. Any material increase in these taxes or fees could adversely affect us.

Some jurisdictions, including those in which we are licensed, empower their regulators to investigate participation by licensees in gaming outside their jurisdiction and require access to periodic reports respecting those gaming activities. Violations of laws in one jurisdiction could result in disciplinary action in other jurisdictions.

Under provisions of gaming laws in jurisdictions in which we have operations, and under our organizational documents, certain of our securities are subject to restriction on ownership which may be imposed by specified governmental authorities. The restrictions may require a holder of our securities to dispose of the securities or, if the holder refuses, or is unable to dispose of the securities, we may be required to repurchase the securities.

A more detailed description of the regulations to which we are subject is contained in Exhibit 99.1 to this Annual Report on Form 10-K, which is incorporated herein by reference.

Internal Revenue Service Regulations

The Internal Revenue Service requires operators of casinos located in the United States to file information returns for U.S. citizens, including names and addresses of winners, for keno, bingo and slot machine winnings in excess of stipulated amounts. The Internal Revenue Service also requires operators to withhold taxes on some keno, bingo and slot machine winnings of nonresident aliens. We are unable to predict the extent to which these requirements, if extended, might impede or otherwise adversely affect operations of, and/or income from, other games.

Regulations adopted by the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network of the Treasury Department (“FINCEN”) and the Nevada Gaming Authorities require the reporting of currency transactions in excess of $10,000 occurring within a gaming day, including identification of the patron by name and social security number. This reporting obligation began in May 1985 and may have resulted in the loss of gaming revenues to jurisdictions outside the United States which are exempt from the ambit of these regulations. In addition to currency transaction reporting requirements, suspicious financial activity is also required to be reported to FINCEN.

Other Laws and Regulations

Our businesses are subject to various federal, state and local laws and regulations in addition to gaming regulations. These laws and regulations include, but are not limited to, restrictions and conditions concerning alcoholic beverages, food service, smoking, environmental matters, employees and employment practices, currency transactions, taxation, zoning and building codes, and marketing and advertising. Such laws and regulations could change or could be interpreted differently in the future, or new laws and regulations could be enacted. Material changes, new laws or regulations, or material differences in interpretations by courts or governmental authorities could adversely affect our operating results.

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The sale of alcoholic beverages is subject to licensing, control and regulation by applicable local regulatory agencies. All licenses are revocable and are not transferable. The agencies involved have full power to limit, condition, suspend or revoke any license, and any disciplinary action could, and revocation would, have a material adverse effect upon our operations.

We also deal with significant amounts of cash in our operations and are subject to various reporting and anti-money laundering regulations. Such laws and regulations could change or could be interpreted differently in the future, or new laws and regulations could be enacted. Material changes, new laws or regulations, or material differences in interpretations by courts or governmental authorities could adversely affect our operating results. See Item 1A, “Risk Factors,” for additional discussion.

Taxation

Gaming companies are typically subject to significant taxes and fees in addition to normal federal, state and local income taxes, and such taxes and fees are subject to increase at any time. We pay substantial taxes and fees with respect to our operations. From time to time, federal, state, local and provincial legislators and officials have proposed changes in tax laws, or in the administration of such laws, affecting the gaming industry. It is not possible to determine with certainty the likelihood of changes in tax laws or in the administration of such laws.

Environmental Matters

We are subject to various federal, state and local environmental, health and safety laws and regulations, including those relating to the use, storage, discharge, emission and disposal of hazardous materials and solid, animal and hazardous wastes and exposure to hazardous materials. Such laws and regulations can impose liability on potentially responsible parties, including the owners or operators of real property, to clean up, or contribute to the cost of cleaning up, sites at which hazardous wastes or materials were disposed of or released. In addition to investigation and remediation liabilities that could arise under such laws and regulations, we could also face personal injury, property damage, fines or other claims by third parties concerning environmental compliance or contamination or exposure to hazardous materials and could be subject to significant fines or penalties for any violations. We have from time to time been responsible for investigating and remediating, or contributing to remediation costs related to, contamination located at or near certain of our facilities, including contamination related to underground storage tanks and groundwater contamination arising from prior uses of land on which certain of our facilities are located. In addition, we have been, and may in the future be, required to manage, abate, remove or contain manure and wastewater generated by concentrated animal feeding operations due to our racetrack operations, mold, lead, asbestos-containing materials or other hazardous conditions found in or on our properties. Although we have incurred, and expect that we will continue to incur, costs related to the investigation, identification and remediation of hazardous materials or conditions known or discovered to exist at our properties, those costs have not had, and are not expected to have, a material adverse effect on our financial condition, results of operations or cash flow.

Reporting and Record-Keeping Requirements

We are required periodically to submit detailed financial and operating reports and furnish any other information about us and our subsidiaries that gaming authorities may require. We are required to maintain a current stock ledger that may be examined by gaming authorities at any time. If any securities are held in trust by an agent or by a nominee, the record holder may be required to disclose the identity of the beneficial owner to gaming authorities. A failure to make such disclosure may be grounds for finding the record holder unsuitable. Gaming authorities may, and in certain jurisdictions do, require certificates for our securities to bear a legend indicating that the securities are subject to specified gaming laws.

Human Capital Management

We aim to provide a workplace that is engaging, empowering, inclusive and respectful for all employees (our “Team Members”), embracing a culture of openness, passion for service and recognition. Our ongoing investment in professional training and development, safety, health and wellbeing and Team Member recognition linked to guest satisfaction are all important drivers of our success in delivering outstanding financial results and creating value for our communities. We have approximately 54,000 employees at our domestic properties throughout our organization.

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Labor Relations

Approximately 21,000 of our employees are covered by collective bargaining agreements with certain of our subsidiaries. The majority of these employees in various job positions are covered by the following agreements:

Employee Group	Approximate Number of Active Employees Represented	Union	Date on which Collective Bargaining Agreement Becomes Amendable
Las Vegas Culinary Employees	12,500	Culinary Workers Union, Local 226	May 31, 2023
Atlantic City Food & Beverage and Hotel Employees	3,000	UNITE HERE, Local 54	May 31, 2022
Las Vegas Bartenders	1,200	Bartenders Union, Local 165	May 31, 2023
Las Vegas Dealers	2,100	United Auto Workers	September 30, 2023

Team Member Engagement, Compensation, Benefits, Development, Safety and Wellbeing

We strive to inspire our Team Members through our mission, vision and values, and our Code of Commitment (described below). To evaluate our Team Member experience and our retention efforts, we monitor a number of employee measures, such as turnover rates and Team Member satisfaction. We are revising our Team Member experience surveys to help us further understand the drivers of engagement and areas where we can improve.

Our compensation and benefits programs are designed to attract, retain and motivate our Team Members. In addition to competitive salaries and wages, we provide a variety of short-term, long-term and incentive-based compensation programs to reward performance relative to key metrics relevant to our business. We offer comprehensive benefit options including, but not limited to, retirement savings plans, health insurance coverage (including medical, mental health, dental, vision and pharmacy), parental leave and company-paid life insurance.

We place utmost importance on creating a safe workplace for our Team Members, embedding procedures so that all our Team Members have the awareness, knowledge and tools to make safe working a habit.

We also have maintained a wellness program to help our Team Members improve their health and wellbeing. This program has demonstrated improved health metrics for participating employees and their covered family members helping reduce the cost of healthcare for Team Members and for the Company. We are implementing enhancements and a relaunch in conjunction with the consolidation of our group health plans.

In 2020, we sponsored Caesars Cares, a 501(c)(3) charity that provides financial assistance to Team Members in need. Approximately 1,200 grants totaling approximately $1 million were provided to Team Members in 2020, including those impacted by hurricanes in several of the communities in which we operate and the COVID-19 public health emergency.

Diversity, Equity and Inclusion

We embrace diversity and aim to create an inclusive working environment that celebrates all our Team Members as individuals. Our diversity, equity and inclusion (“DEI”) framework identifies five pillars of activity: advocacy, Team Members, suppliers, communities and guests for a holistic approach to embedding DEI in everything we do. We publish our DEI data in our annual CSR report (described below). In 2020, 44% of leadership roles in the Company were held by women and 40% were held by people of color. In 2021, we set our new goals around gender and racial diversity. By 2025, 50% of leadership roles will be held by women. Furthermore, by 2025, 50% of leadership roles will be held by people of color.

COVID-19 Public Health Emergency

In 2020, the COVID-19 public health emergency brought unparalleled threats to the health and safety of our Team Members, guests, partners and communities and created unprecedented challenges. Our foremost priority was to protect the health and safety of all those connected to our business while operating in compliance with all applicable guidance, directives and protocols. We have made every effort to alleviate hardship by providing continued pay for up to six weeks for furloughed Team Members, maintaining payment of health insurance premiums for furloughed Team Members, maintaining our employee assistance programs and sponsoring Caesars Cares (see above). In our communities, we donated perishable goods amounting to thousands of meals following the closure of dining facilities at our properties. We also donated funds, and our Team Members volunteered, to help organizations across the United States to support community needs.

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Corporate Social Responsibility

Caesars’s Board of Directors (the “Board”) and senior executives view Corporate Social Responsibility (“CSR”) as an integral element in the way we do business, in the belief that being a good corporate citizen helps protect the company against risk, contributes to improved performance and helps foster positive relationships with all those with whom we connect. The Board and our executive management are committed to being an industry leader in CSR (which includes diversity, equity and inclusion, social impact, and environmental sustainability). In 2020, the Board and our leadership continued to engage with our CEO-level external CSR Advisory Board comprised of experts representing DEI, business strategy, academia and investors, and used their guidance to confirm our CSR priorities. These priorities are reflected in our eleventh annual CSR report, published in 2020 in accordance with Global Reporting Initiative Standards.

CSR Committee of the Board

Following the Merger in July 2020, Caesars’ Board formed a CSR committee that defines the duties and responsibilities of the Board in supporting delivery of our corporate purpose and CSR strategy as well as CSR-related aspects of corporate governance such as Board diversity.

Code of Commitment

Caesars is committed to being a responsible corporate citizen and environmental steward through our CSR strategy, PEOPLE PLANET PLAY. This is reflected in our Code of Commitment which is our public pledge to our guests, Team Members, communities, business partners and all those we reach that we will honor the trust they have placed in us through ethical conduct and integrity. We commit to:

•PEOPLE: Supporting the wellbeing of our Team Members, guests and local communities.

•PLANET: Taking care of the world we all call home.

•PLAY: Creating memorable experiences for our guests and leading responsible gaming practices in the industry.

PEOPLE PLANET PLAY Strategy

Our PEOPLE PLANET PLAY strategy defines how we meet the obligations of our Code of Commitment and is aligned with global priorities articulated by the United Nations as the Sustainable Development Goals. PEOPLE PLANET PLAY establishes multi-year targets in key areas of impact, including science-based greenhouse gas emissions-reduction, formally approved by the Science Based Targets Initiative (“SBTi”), aligning with global best practices on climate change action. We are reviewing our PEOPLE PLANET PLAY targets and expect to publish our targets after our first year as a combined entity.

Responsible Gaming

For more than thirty years, Caesars has maintained its Responsible Gaming (“RG”) program. We train tens of thousands of Team Members each year and a cadre of RG Ambassadors throughout our properties to identify guests in need of assistance and provide support. In recent years, Caesars has contributed to the National Center for Responsible Gaming, the National Council on Problem Gaming and other state programs to help advance responsible practices in the gaming industry.

Environmental Stewardship

We take a proactive approach to environmental sustainability through our CodeGreen strategy established by Former Caesars in 2007, consistently improving our performance across energy and greenhouse gas emissions efficiencies, reduction of water consumption and increasing waste diversion from landfills. Caesars recognizes the impact climate change can play both on our business and the guests we serve. Identifying, assessing, and managing the risks and opportunities therefore plays a vital role in our long-term strategic thinking on climate and water, and how we approach our CSR goals. Between 2011 and 2019, Former Caesars reduced its absolute Scope 1 and 2 greenhouse gas (“GHG”) emissions by 19.7%. In 2019, Former Caesars further committed to mitigating its impact on climate change by updating our previously approved science based targets to be in line with well below 2 degrees Celsius per SBTi: (i) reducing absolute Scope 1 and 2 GHG emissions by 35% by 2025, and 100% by 2050 from a 2011 base-year and (ii) having 60% of suppliers by spend institute science-based GHG reduction targets for their operations by 2023. In 2021, we expect to establish a new baseline in order to reaffirm our targets and goals as a combined company. Caesars is pursuing renewable energy sources and low-carbon options, including on site solar developments. Our long-term goals include evaluating energy supply for each of our properties in pursuit of our SBTs.

We voluntarily participate in the CDP (formerly the Carbon Disclosure Project), an international nonprofit that drives sustainable economies. In 2020, Caesars made the A List for climate and water security and earned a spot on the Supplier Engagement Leaderboard from CDP. Just 5% of companies assessed by CDP make A List and only 7% make the Supplier Engagement Leaderboard.

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We are committed to creating and investing in policies and procedures towards CSR efforts. In order to engage guests in our CSR efforts, we have branded our hotel rooms with our PEOPLE PLANET PLAY messaging, inviting guests to play a role by using water, air-conditioning and towels with the environment in mind. We promote sustainable sourcing of key food ingredients for our menus from sustainably managed farms and fisheries.

Community Investment

Caesars contributes extensively to our local communities to help them develop and prosper, through funding community projects, employee volunteering and cash donations from the Caesars Foundation, a private foundation funded from our operating income. In 2020, the Caesars Foundation contributed $1.3 million to communities across the United States with an emphasis on COVID-19 crisis relief at the local level through food and shelter insecurity, wellness and workforce development programs. The Foundation also continued to support significant national relationships that support diversity equity and inclusion.

Many of our community partners are long-term collaborations. For example, our many years of partnership with Meals on Wheels America (“MOWA”) to combat the issues of senior hunger and isolation cumulated in a national virtual summit during Seniors Appreciation Month in 2020 which addressed exponential needs on the issues, particularly given the impact of the COVID-19 public health emergency.

From 2018 through 2020, we hosted a national Economic Equity Tour through live webinars and on-line resources for thousands of women of color owned small businesses, and diverse non-profits. Expert-led webinars provided resources in the areas of financial empowerment, nonprofit organization development, and entrepreneurship.

Available Information

We are required to file annual, quarterly and other current reports and information with the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”). Because we submit filings to the SEC electronically, access to this information is available at the SEC’s website (www.sec.gov). This site contains reports and other information regarding issuers that file electronically with the SEC.

We make our Annual Reports on Form 10-K, our Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, our Current Reports on Form 8-K, and all amendments to these reports, available free of charge on our corporate website (www.caesars.com/corporate) as soon as reasonably practicable after such reports are filed with, or furnished to, the SEC. In addition, our Code of Ethics and Business Conduct and charters of the Audit Committee, Compensation Committee, and the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee are available on our website. We will provide reasonable quantities of electronic or paper copies of filings free of charge upon request. In addition, we will provide a copy of the above referenced charters to stockholders upon request.

References in this document to our website address do not incorporate by reference the information contained on the website into this Annual Report on Form 10-K.

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Item 1A.    Risk Factors.

Risks Relating to Operating Our Business

The outbreak of COVID-19 has impacted our operations and caused an economic downturn, widespread unemployment and an adverse impact on consumer sentiment, and we expect that our business and results of operations will continue to be adversely affected by the impact of COVID-19 for the foreseeable future.

On March 13, 2020, in response to the coronavirus public health emergency the U.S. government declared a national state of emergency. In an effort to help control the spread of COVID-19, public health officials imposed or recommended various measures. All of our casino properties were temporarily closed for the period from mid-March 2020 due to orders issued by various government agencies and tribal bodies as part of certain precautionary measures intended to help slow the spread of the COVID-19 public health emergency. See “Item 1 – Business - COVID-19 Public Health Emergency” for further description of the precautionary measures imposed on us and the temporary closure of our casinos. While we began to open our properties beginning in mid-May 2020 and almost all of our properties are currently open, our operations, financial results and cash flows have been, and we expect them to continue to be, affected by social distancing measures, including reduced gaming operations arising from the reconfiguration of our gaming floor, limitations on the number of customers present in our facilities, restrictions on hotel, food and beverage outlets and limits on events that would otherwise attract customers to our properties.

COVID-19 has materially adversely affected the economy and financial markets of the United States and the world and has resulted in widespread unemployment in the United States. Consumer demand for casino hotel and racetrack properties such as ours is particularly sensitive to downturns in the economy, unemployment and the associated impact on discretionary spending on leisure activities which bring demand for casino hotel properties such as ours. Reduced customer demand could result in lower occupancy rates, reduced visitation and additional disruptions in our casino business.

The impact of COVID-19 on our business remains uncertain. In particular, a delay in wide distribution of a vaccine, or a lack of public acceptance of a vaccine, could lead people to continue to self-isolate and not participate in the economy at pre-pandemic levels for a prolonged period of time. To the extent the U.S. economy and other major global economies experience a recession as a result of COVID-19, our business and operations could be materially adversely affected.

The impact of changes in customer demand resulting from the economic downturn, widespread unemployment, reduced consumer confidence and consumer fears on our properties cannot reasonably be determined, but it could be significant and protracted. As a result of the foregoing, we expect that COVID-19 will continue to have a material impact on our business, financial condition, liquidity, results of operations (including revenues and profitability) for an extended period of time.

We face substantial competition in the hotel and casino industry, especially in Las Vegas, our largest jurisdiction, and expect that such competition will continue.

The gaming industry is highly competitive and competition is intense in most of the markets in which we operate. We compete with a variety of gaming operations, including land-based casinos, dockside casinos, riverboat casinos, casinos located on racing tracks and casinos located on Native American reservations and other forms of legalized gaming such as video gaming terminals (VGTs) at bars, restaurants and truck stops and online gambling and sports betting. We also compete, to a lesser extent, with other forms of legalized gaming and entertainment such as bingo, pull tab games, card parlors, sportsbooks, fantasy sports websites, “cruise-to-nowhere” operations, pari-mutuel or telephonic betting on horse racing and dog racing, state-sponsored lotteries, jai-alai and, in the future, may compete with gaming at other venues. In addition, we compete more generally with other forms of entertainment for the discretionary spending of our customers. In some instances, particularly in the case of Native American casinos, our competitors pay lower taxes or no taxes.

In recent years, many casino operators, including us, have reinvested in existing jurisdictions to attract new customers or to gain market share, thereby increasing competition in those jurisdictions. As an example, in response to changing trends, Las Vegas operators have been focused on expanding their non-gaming offerings, including upgrades to hotel rooms, new food and beverage offerings, and new entertainment offerings. The expansion of existing casino entertainment properties, the increase in the number of properties, and the aggressive marketing strategies of many of our competitors have increased competition in many markets in which we operate, and this intense competition is expected to continue. While the long term impact of COVID-19 on these market dynamics remains uncertain, these competitive pressures have and are expected to continue to adversely affect our financial performance.

Our brick-and-mortar operations face increasing competition as a result of the expansion of legalized online gaming and betting in a number of the jurisdictions in which we operate. While we believe that we are well positioned to compete with new entrants to the betting and gaming market through online betting and gaming, including through our online betting and gaming

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offerings, the competitive dynamic is evolving and we cannot assure you that our results of operations will not be adversely impacted by the expansion of legalized online gaming and betting.

States that already have legalized casino gaming may further expand gaming, and other states that have not yet legalized gaming may do so in the future. We also compete with Native American gaming operations in California and other jurisdictions where Native American tribes operate large-scale gaming facilities or otherwise conduct gaming activities on Native American lands, which we expect will continue to expand. Further expansion of legalized casino gaming in jurisdictions in or near our markets or changes to gaming laws in states in which we have operations and in states near our operations could increase competition and could adversely affect our operations.

Increased competition may require us to make substantial capital expenditures to maintain and enhance the competitive positions of our properties to increase the attractiveness and add to the appeal of our facilities. Because a significant portion of our cash flow is required to pay obligations under our outstanding indebtedness and our lease obligations, there can be no assurance that we will have sufficient funds to undertake, or that we will be able to obtain sufficient financing to fund, such expenditures. If we are unable to make such expenditures, our competitive position could be negatively affected.

Our business is sensitive to reductions in discretionary consumer spending as a result of downturns in the economy and other factors outside our control.

Consumer demand for casino hotel and racetrack properties such as ours is particularly sensitive to downturns in the economy and the associated impact on discretionary spending on leisure activities. Changes in discretionary consumer spending or consumer preferences brought about by factors such as perceived or actual general economic conditions, effects of declines in consumer confidence in the economy, the impact of high energy and food costs, the increased cost of travel, decreased disposable consumer income and wealth, fears of war and future acts of terrorism, or widespread illnesses or epidemics, including COVID-19, can have a material adverse effect on leisure and business travel, discretionary spending and other areas of economic behavior that directly impact the gaming and entertainment industries in general and could further reduce customer demand for the amenities that we offer. In addition, increases in gasoline prices, including increases prompted by global political and economic instabilities, can adversely affect our operations because most of our patrons travel to our properties by car or on airlines that may pass on increases in fuel costs to passengers in the form of higher ticket prices.

Win rates (hold rates) for our casino operations depend on a variety of factors, some of which are beyond our control.

The gaming industry is characterized by an element of chance. Accordingly, we employ theoretical win rates to estimate what a certain type of game, on average, will win or lose in the long run. In addition to the element of chance, win rates (hold percentages) are also affected by the spread of table limits and factors that are beyond our control, such as a player’s skill, experience, and behavior, the mix of games played, the financial resources of players, the volume of bets placed, and the amount of time players spend gambling. As a result of the variability in these factors, the actual win rates at our casinos may differ from the theoretical win rates we have estimated and could result in the winnings of our gaming customers exceeding those anticipated. The variability of win rates (hold rates) also have the potential to negatively impact our financial condition, results of operations, and cash flows.

We face the risk of fraud, theft, and cheating.

We face the risk that gaming customers may attempt or commit fraud or theft or cheat in order to increase winnings. Such acts of fraud, theft, or cheating could involve the use of counterfeit chips or other tactics, possibly in collusion with our employees. Internal acts of cheating could also be conducted by employees through collusion with dealers, surveillance staff, floor managers, or other casino or gaming area staff. Additionally, we also face the risk that customers may attempt or commit fraud or theft with respect to our non-gaming offerings or against other customers. Such risks include stolen credit or charge cards or cash, falsified checks, theft of retail inventory and purchased goods, and unpaid or counterfeit receipts. Failure to discover such acts or schemes in a timely manner could result in losses in our operations. Negative publicity related to such acts or schemes could have an adverse effect on our reputation, potentially causing a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations, and cash flows.

We extend credit to a portion of our customers, and we may not be able to collect gaming receivables from our credit customers.

We conduct our gaming activities on a credit and cash basis at many of our properties. Any such credit we extend is unsecured. Table games players typically are extended more credit than slot players, and high-stakes players typically are extended more credit than customers who tend to wager lower amounts. High-end gaming is more volatile than other forms of gaming, and variances in win-loss results attributable to high-end gaming may have a significant positive or negative impact on cash flow and earnings in a particular period. We extend credit to those customers whose level of play and financial resources warrant, in

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the opinion of management, an extension of credit. These large receivables could have a significant impact on our results of operations if deemed uncollectible. Gaming debts evidenced by a credit instrument, including what is commonly referred to as a “marker,” and judgments on gaming debts are enforceable under the current laws of the jurisdictions in which we allow play on a credit basis, and judgments on gaming debts in such jurisdictions are enforceable in all U.S. states under the Full Faith and Credit Clause of the U.S. Constitution; however, other jurisdictions may determine that enforcement of gaming debts is against public policy. Although courts of some foreign nations will enforce gaming debts directly and the assets in the U.S. of foreign debtors may be reached to satisfy a judgment, judgments on gaming debts from U.S. courts are not binding on the courts of many foreign nations.

In addition, in November 2017, the Chinese government adopted new rules to control the cross-border transportation of cash and bearer negotiable instruments, specifically to reduce the international transfer of cash in connection with activities that are illegal in China, including gambling. The Chinese government has recently taken steps to prohibit the transfer of cash for the payment of gaming debts. These developments may have the effect of reducing the collectability of gaming debts of players from China. It is unclear whether these and other measures will continue to be in effect or become more restrictive in the future. These and any future foreign currency control policy developments that may be implemented by foreign jurisdictions could significantly impact our business, financial condition and results of operations.

Compromises of our information systems or unauthorized access to confidential information or our customers’ personal information could materially harm our reputation and business.

We collect and store confidential, personal information relating to our customers for various business purposes, including marketing and financial purposes, and credit card information for processing payments. For example, we handle, collect and store personal information in connection with our customers staying at our hotels and enrolling in Caesars Rewards. We may share this personal and confidential information with vendors or other third parties in connection with processing of transactions, operating certain aspects of our business, or for marketing purposes. Our collection and use of personal data are governed by state and federal privacy laws and regulations as well as the applicable laws and regulations in other countries in which we operate. Privacy law is subject to frequent changes and varies significantly by jurisdiction. We may incur significant costs in order to ensure compliance with the various applicable privacy requirements. In addition, privacy laws and regulations may limit our ability to market to our customers.

We assess and monitor the security of collection, storage, and transmission of customer information on an ongoing basis. We utilize commercially available software and technologies to monitor, assess and secure our network. Further, some of the systems currently used for transmission and approval of payment card transactions and the technology utilized in payment cards themselves, all of which can put payment card data at risk, are determined and controlled by the payment card industry, and other such systems are determined and controlled by us. Although we have taken steps designed to safeguard our customers’ confidential personal information and important internal company data, our network and other systems and those of third parties, such as service providers, could be compromised, damaged, or disrupted by a third-party breach of our system security or that of a third-party provider or as a result of purposeful or accidental actions of third parties, our employees, or those employees of a third party, power outages, computer viruses, system failures, natural disasters, or other catastrophic events. Our third-party information system service providers face risks relating to cybersecurity similar to ours, and we do not directly control any of such parties’ information security operations. Advances in computer and software capabilities, encryption technology, new tools, and other developments may increase the risk of a security breach. As a result of any security breach, customer information or other proprietary data may be accessed or transmitted by or to a third party. Despite the measures we have implemented to safeguard our information, there can be no assurance that we are adequately protecting our information.

Any loss, disclosure of, misappropriation of, or access to customers’ or other proprietary information or other breach of our information security could result in legal claims or legal proceedings, including regulatory investigations and actions, or liability for failure to comply with privacy and information security laws, including for failure to protect personal information or for misusing personal information, which could disrupt our operations, damage our reputation, and expose us to claims from customers, financial institutions, regulators, payment card associations, employees, and other persons, any of which could have an adverse effect on our financial condition, results of operations, and cash flow.

We have cybersecurity insurance to respond to a breach which is designed to cover expenses around notification, credit monitoring, investigation, crisis management, public relations and legal advice. We also carry other insurance which may cover ancillary aspects of the event; however, damage and claims arising from a breach may not be completely covered or may exceed the amount of any insurance available.

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Our reliance on our computer systems and software could expose us to great financial harm if any of our computer systems or software were subject to any material disruption or corruption.

We rely significantly on our computer systems and software to receive and properly process internal and external data, including data related to Caesars Rewards. A disruption or corruption of the proper functioning of our computer systems or software could cause us to lose data or record erroneous data, which could result in material losses. We cannot guarantee that our efforts to maintain competitive computer systems and software will be successful. Our computer systems and software may fail or be subject to bugs or other errors, resulting in service interruptions or other unintended consequences. If any of these risks materialize, they could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, and results of operations

Acts of terrorism, war, natural disasters, severe weather, and political, economic and military conditions may impede our ability to operate or may negatively impact our financial results.

Terrorist attacks and other acts of war or hostility have created many economic and political uncertainties. For example, a substantial number of the customers of our properties in Las Vegas use air travel. As a result of terrorist acts that occurred on September 11, 2001, domestic and international travel was severely disrupted, which resulted in a decrease in customer visits to our properties in Las Vegas. Visitation to Las Vegas also declined for a period of time following the mass shooting tragedy on October 1, 2017. We cannot predict the extent to which disruptions in air or other forms of travel as a result of any further terrorist act, security alerts or war, uprisings, or hostilities in places such as Iraq, Afghanistan, and/or Syria or other countries throughout the world, and governmental responses to those acts or hostilities, will directly or indirectly impact our business and operating results. For example, our operations in Cairo, Egypt, were negatively affected from the uprising there in January 2011. As a consequence of the threat of terrorist attacks and other acts of war or hostility in the future, premiums for a variety of insurance products have increased, and some types of insurance are no longer available. If any such event were to affect our properties, we would likely be adversely affected.

In addition, natural and man-made disasters such as major fires, floods, severe snowstorms, hurricanes, earthquakes, and oil spills could also adversely impact our business and operating results. Such events could lead to the loss of use of one or more of our properties for an extended period of time and disrupt our ability to attract customers to certain of our gaming facilities. For example, our property in Lake Charles, Louisiana has been closed since August 27, 2020 due to damage resulting from Hurricane Laura. Inadequate insurance or lack of available insurance for these and other certain types or levels of risk could expose us to significant losses in the event that a catastrophe occurred for which we are underinsured. In most cases, we have insurance that covers portions of any losses from a natural disaster, but it is subject to deductibles and maximum payouts in many cases. Although we may be covered by insurance from a natural disaster, the timing of our receipt of insurance proceeds, if any, may be out of our control. In some cases, however, we may receive no proceeds from insurance. Further, if properties subject to our leases with VICI and GLPI are impacted by a casualty event, such leases require us to repair or restore the affected properties even if the cost of such repair or restoration exceeds the insurance proceeds that we receive. Under such circumstances, the rent under such leases is required to be paid during the period of repair or restoration even if all or a portion of the affected property is not operating. In addition to the damage caused to our properties by a casualty loss, we may suffer business disruption as a result of the casualty event or be subject to claims by third parties that may be injured or harmed. While we carry general liability insurance and business interruption insurance, there can be no assurance that insurance will be available or adequate to cover all loss and damage to which our business or our assets might be subjected and the timing and receipt of insurance proceeds, if any, may be out of our control.

Our business may be subject to seasonal fluctuations that could result in volatility and have an adverse effect on our operating results.

Our business may be subject to some degree of seasonality. Weather conditions may deter or prevent customers from reaching the facilities or undertaking trips. Such conditions would particularly affect customers who are traveling longer distances to visit our properties. Seasonality may cause our properties working capital cash flow requirements to vary from quarter to quarter depending on the variability in the volume and timing of sales. Business in our properties can also fluctuate due to specific holidays or other significant events, such as Easter (particularly when the holiday falls in a different quarter than the prior year), the World Series of Poker tournament (with respect to our Las Vegas properties), city-wide conventions, a large sporting event or a concert, or visits by our premium players. We also believe that any seasonality, holiday, or other significant event may affect our various properties or regions differently. These factors, among other things, make forecasting more difficult and may adversely affect our properties’ ability to manage working capital and to predict financial results accurately, which could adversely affect our business, financial condition, and operating results.

Our business is particularly sensitive to energy prices and a rise in energy prices could harm our operating results.

We are a large consumer of electricity and other energy and, therefore, higher energy prices may have an adverse effect on our results of operations. Accordingly, increases in energy costs may have a negative impact on our operating results. Additionally,

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higher electricity and gasoline prices that affect our customers may result in reduced visitation to our resorts and a reduction in our revenues. We may be indirectly impacted by regulatory requirements aimed at reducing the impacts of climate change directed at up-stream utility providers, as we could experience potentially higher utility, fuel, and transportation costs.

Any deterioration in our reputation or the reputation of our brands could adversely impact our business, financial condition, or results of operations.

Our business is dependent on the quality and reputation of our Company and brands. Events beyond our control could affect the reputation of one or more of our properties or more generally impact our corporate or brand image. Other factors that could influence our reputation include the quality of the services we offer and our actions with regard to social issues such as diversity, human rights and support for local communities. Broad access to social media makes it easy for anyone to provide public feedback that can influence perceptions of us, our brands or our properties. It may be difficult to control or effectively manage negative publicity, regardless of whether it is accurate. Negative events and publicity could quickly and materially damage perceptions of us, our brands or our properties, which, in turn, could adversely impact our business, financial condition or results of operations through loss of customers, loss of business opportunities, lack of acceptance of our company to operate in host communities, employee retention or recruiting difficulties or other difficulties.

Risks related to Human Capital

We rely on our key personnel and we may face difficulties in attracting and retaining qualified employees for our casinos and race tracks.

Our future success will depend upon, among other things, our ability to keep our senior executives and highly qualified employees. The operation of our business requires, qualified executives, managers and skilled employees with gaming and horse racing industry experience and qualifications who are able to obtain the requisite licenses and approval from the applicable gaming authorities. We compete with other potential employers for employees, and we may not succeed in hiring or retaining the executives and other employees that we need. A sudden loss of or inability to replace key employees could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations. Moreover, there has from time to time been a shortage of skilled labor in our markets and the continued expansion of gaming near our facilities, including the expansion of Native American gaming and internet betting and gaming, may make it more difficult for us to attract qualified candidates. While we believe that we will continue to be able to attract and retain qualified employees, shortages of skilled labor will make it increasingly difficult and expensive to attract and retain the services of a satisfactory number of qualified employees, and we may incur higher costs than expected as a result.

Work stoppages and other labor problems could negatively impact our future profits.

As of December 31, 2020, we had collective bargaining agreements covering approximately 21,000 employees. A lengthy strike or other work stoppages at any of our casino properties could have an adverse effect on our business and results of operations.

From time to time, we have also experienced attempts by labor organizations to organize certain of our non-union employees. These efforts have achieved some success to date. We cannot provide any assurance that we will not experience additional and successful union activity in the future. The impact of this union activity is undetermined and could negatively impact our results of operations.

We cannot assure you that we will be able to retain our performers and other entertainment offerings on acceptable terms or at all.

While our ability to offer live performances has been limited due to COVID-19, historically our performers have drawn customers to our properties and have been a significant source of our revenue. We cannot assure you that we will be able to retain our performers or other shows on acceptable terms or at all. In addition, the third parties that we depend on for our properties’ entertainment offerings may become incapable or unwilling to provide their services at the level agreed upon or at all.

Risks Relating to Our Capital Structure

Our substantial indebtedness and the fact that a significant portion of our cash flow is used to make interest payments and rent payments under our lease agreements could adversely affect our ability to raise additional capital to fund our operations, limit our ability to react to changes in the economy or our industry and prevent us from making debt service payments and rent payments.

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As of December 31, 2020 we had $15.0 billion of outstanding face value indebtedness, in addition to leases with VICI and GLPI that require an annual rent payment of $1.1 billion in 2021 and that are subject to annual escalation. See Note 10 for a description of our obligations under our leases with VICI and GLPI and Note 12 for details regarding our debt outstanding and related restrictive covenants. As a result, a significant portion of our cash flow is applied to make interest payments with respect to our outstanding debt and payments under our leases. These financial obligations may have important negative consequences for us, including:

•limiting our ability to use operating cash flow in other areas of our business because we must dedicate a significant portion of these funds to make payments on our debt and lease obligations;

•increasing our vulnerability to the COVID-19 pandemic and general adverse economic and industry conditions;

•limiting our flexibility in planning for, or reacting to, changes in our businesses and the markets in which we operate;

•placing us at a competitive disadvantage compared to competitors with debt and rent obligations that are less than ours;

•increasing our vulnerability to, and limiting our ability to react to, changing market conditions, changes in our industry and economic downturns;

•limiting our ability to obtain additional financing to fund working capital requirements, capital expenditures, debt service, acquisitions, general corporate or other obligations;

•subjecting us to a number of restrictive covenants that, among other things, require us to make capital expenditures and limit our ability to pay dividends and distributions, make acquisitions and dispositions, borrow additional funds and make other investments;

•exposing us to interest rate risk due to the variable interest rate on borrowings under our credit facilities; and

•affecting our ability to renew gaming and other licenses necessary to conduct our business.

Despite our current indebtedness levels, we and our subsidiaries may still incur significant additional indebtedness. Incurring more indebtedness could increase the risks associated with our substantial indebtedness.

We and our subsidiaries may be able to incur substantial additional indebtedness, including additional secured indebtedness, and may enter into financing obligations similar to our leases with VICI and GLPI in the future. As of December 31, 2020, we had $2.2 billion of borrowing capacity under our revolving credit facilities, before consideration of $19 million in outstanding letters of credit under CEI Revolving Credit Facility and $65 million in outstanding letters of credit under CRC Revolving Credit Facility. Further, our existing debt agreements currently permit, and we expect that agreements governing debt that we incur in the future will permit, us to incur certain other additional secured and unsecured debt. Further, we may incur other liabilities that do not constitute indebtedness. The risks that we face based on our outstanding indebtedness may intensify if we incur additional indebtedness or financing obligations in the future.

The LIBOR calculation method may change and LIBOR is expected to be phased out after 2021.

Our credit facilities calculate interest on the outstanding principal balance using LIBOR. On July 27, 2017, the United Kingdom Financial Conduct Authority (the “FCA”) announced it would phase out LIBOR as a benchmark by the end of 2021. In the meantime, actions by the FCA, other regulators or law enforcement agencies may result in changes to the method by which LIBOR is calculated. At this time, it is not possible to predict the effect on our financial condition, results of operations and cash flows of any such changes or any other reforms to LIBOR that may be enacted in the United Kingdom or elsewhere.

A significant portion of our casinos are located on leased property. If we default on one or more leases, the applicable lessors could terminate the affected leases and we could lose possession of the affected casino.

We currently lease certain parcels of land on which a significant portion of our properties are located. As a ground lessee, we have the right to use the leased land; however, we do not hold fee ownership of the underlying land. Accordingly, we have no interest in the leased land or improvements thereon at the expiration of the ground leases. If our use of the land underlying our casino properties is disrupted permanently or for a significant period of time, then the value of our assets could be impaired and our business and operations could be adversely affected. Our leases provide that they may be terminated for a number of reasons, including failure to pay rent, taxes or other payment obligations or the breach of other covenants contained in the leases. In particular, our leases with GLPI and VICI require annual rent payments of at least $1.1 billion in 2021, which is subject to escalation annually, and obligate us to make specified minimum capital expenditures with respect to the leased properties. If our business and properties fail to generate sufficient earnings, the payments required to service the rent obligations under our leases with GLPI and VICI could materially and adversely limit our ability to react to changes in our business and make acquisitions and investments in our properties. If we were to default on any one or more of these leases, the applicable lessors could terminate the affected leases and we could lose possession of the affected land and any improvements on the land, including the hotels and casinos. A termination of our ground leases or our leases with GLPI or VICI could result in a default under our debt agreements and could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results

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of operations. Further, in the event that any lessor of our leased properties, including GLPI or VICI, encounters financial, operational, regulatory or other challenges, there can be no assurance that such lessor will be able to comply with its obligations under the applicable lease.

Certain of our leases, including our leases with GLPI and VICI, are “triple-net” leases. Accordingly, in addition to rent, we are required to pay, among other things, the following: (1) lease payments to the underlying ground lessor for properties that are subject to ground leases; (2) facility maintenance costs; (3) all insurance premiums for insurance with respect to the leased properties and the business conducted on the leased properties; (4) taxes levied on or with respect to the leased properties (other than taxes on the income of the lessor); and (5) all utilities and other services necessary or appropriate for the leased properties and the business conducted on the leased properties. We are responsible for incurring the costs described in the preceding sentence notwithstanding the fact that many of the benefits received in exchange for such costs shall in part accrue to the lessor as the owner of the associated facilities. In addition, we remain obligated for lease payments and other obligations under our leases with GLPI and VICI and other ground leases even if one or more of such leased facilities is unprofitable or if we decide to withdraw from those locations. We could incur special charges relating to the closing of such facilities including lease termination costs, impairment charges and other special charges that would reduce our net income and could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

Legal and Regulatory Risks

We are subject to extensive governmental regulation, taxation policies and licensing, and gaming authorities have significant control over our operations, which could have an adverse effect on our business.

Licensing Requirements. The ownership and operation of casino gaming, online betting and gaming, riverboat and horse racing facilities are subject to extensive federal, state and local regulation, and regulatory authorities at local, state and national levels have broad powers with respect to the licensing of gaming businesses. We currently hold all state and local licenses and related approvals necessary to conduct our present gaming operations, but we must periodically apply to renew many of our licenses and registrations. We cannot assure you that we will be able to obtain such renewals. Any failure to maintain or renew our existing licenses, registrations, permits or approvals would have a material adverse effect on us. Furthermore, if additional laws or regulations are adopted or existing laws or regulations are amended or interpreted differently, these regulations could impose additional restrictions or costs that could have a significant adverse effect on us.

Gaming authorities with jurisdiction over our operations may, in their discretion, require the holder of any securities issued by us to file applications, be investigated, and be found suitable to own our securities, and, if a holder is found unsuitable, we can be sanctioned, including the loss of approvals that are required for us to continue our gaming operations in the relevant jurisdictions, if such unsuitable person does not timely sell our securities. Our officers, directors and key employees are also subject to similar findings of unsuitability and the gaming authorities may require us to terminate the employment of any person who refuses to file appropriate applications. See “Item 1 - Gaming Licenses and Governmental Regulations” and Exhibit 99.1 for further description of the regulations to which we are subject. The results of findings of unsuitability could materially adversely affect our gaming operations. Applicable gaming laws and regulations restrict our ability to issue securities, incur debt and undertake other financing activities. Such transactions would generally require approval of applicable gaming authorities, and our financing counterparties, including lenders, might be subject to various licensing and related approval procedures in the various jurisdictions in which we operate gaming facilities.

Compliance with Other Laws. We are also subject to a variety of other federal, state and local laws, rules, regulations and ordinances that apply to non-gaming businesses, including restrictions enacted in response to COVD-19, zoning, environmental, construction and land-use laws and regulations governing smoking and the serving of alcoholic beverages. Our operations have been adversely impacted by regulations enacted to limit the spread of COVID-19. In addition, legislation in various forms to ban indoor tobacco smoking has been enacted or introduced in many states and local jurisdictions, including several of the jurisdictions in which we operate. If additional restrictions are enacted in our jurisdictions, we could experience a significant decrease in gaming revenue and operating results at our properties and, particularly if such restrictions are not applicable to all competitive facilities in that gaming market, our business could be materially adversely affected. The likelihood or outcome of similar legislation in other jurisdictions and referendums in the future cannot be predicted, though any additional limitations on our operations would be expected to negatively impact our financial performance.

Regulations adopted by FINCEN require us to report currency transactions in excess of $10,000 occurring within a gaming day. U.S. Treasury Department regulations also require us to report certain suspicious activity, including any transaction that exceeds $5,000, if we know, suspect or have reason to believe that the transaction involves funds from illegal activity or is designed to evade federal regulations or reporting requirements. Substantial penalties can be imposed if we fail to comply with these regulations. FINCEN has recently increased its focus on gaming companies.

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We are required to report certain customer’s gambling winnings via form W-2G to comply with current Internal Revenue Service regulations. Should these regulations change, we would expect to incur additional costs to comply with the revised reporting requirements.

Taxation and Fees. In addition, gaming companies are generally subject to significant revenue-based taxes and fees in addition to normal federal, state and local income taxes, and such taxes and fees are subject to increase at any time. We pay substantial taxes and fees with respect to our operations. Tax laws are dynamic and subject to change as new laws are passed and new interpretations of the law are issued or applied, affecting the gaming industry. The large number of state and local governments with significant current or projected budget deficits makes it more likely that those governments that currently permit gaming will seek to fund such deficits with new or increased gaming taxes and/or property taxes and worsening economic conditions could intensify those efforts. Any material increase, or the adoption of additional taxes or fees, could have a material adverse effect on our future financial results.

We expect to expand our sportsbook business and engage in online sportsbook, casino gaming and poker. There can be no assurance that regulations authorizing such activities will be approved in the jurisdictions in which we operate or that the market for such gaming activities will develop as expected.

During the second quarter of 2018, the U.S. Supreme Court overturned the federal ban on sports betting. As a result, several jurisdictions in which we operate legalized sports betting and additional jurisdictions may do so in the future. We have entered into an agreement with William Hill plc on the terms of a recommended cash acquisition pursuant to which we would acquire the entire issued and to be issued share capital (other than shares owned by us or held in treasury) of William Hill plc and we currently have relationships with (i) William Hill pursuant to which William Hill has agreed to operate as our sports betting operator, including with respect to mobile and online sports wagering, for a period of 25 years, (ii) the Stars Group Inc. (“TSG”) pursuant to which we agreed to provide TSG with options to obtain access to certain of our licenses for online sports wagering and real money online gaming and poker, for a period of 20 years, (iii) various sports brands including NFL and ESPN, for limited events, and (iv) other online betting and gaming operators. See “Item 7 – Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations – Partnerships and Acquisitions” for a further description of the arrangements with William Hill, TSG, and additional sports brands. Currently William Hill operates 37 sportsbooks at our properties in eight states and, following the acquisition, Caesars and William Hill will be live with sports wagering across 15 U.S. states plus the district of Columbia. However, our ability to further expand our sports betting and online operations is dependent on adoption of regulations permitting sports betting in the United. There can be no assurances when, or if, any such regulations will be adopted, or the terms of such regulations, in certain of the jurisdictions in which we operate.

The market for sports betting and online gaming is rapidly evolving and highly competitive with an increasing number of competitors. The success of our sportsbook and online betting and gaming partners, our interest in William Hill and TSG and the results of operations from sports betting and online sportsbook and gaming conducted at our properties or under the authority of our licenses are dependent on a number of factors that are beyond our control, including:

•the timing of adoption of regulations authorizing such betting and gaming activities and the restrictions contained in such regulations;

•the tax rates and license fees applicable to such activities;

•our ability to gain market share in a newly developing market;

•the potential that the market does not develop at all or does not develop as we anticipate;

•our ability to compete with new entrants in the market;

•changes in consumer demographics and public tastes and preferences; and

•the availability and popularity of other forms of entertainment.

There can be no assurance as to the returns that we will receive from our current and anticipated sports betting and online gaming operations or our other relationships that we have granted rights to market access or future similar arrangements with other market service providers.

We may not be able to protect the intellectual property rights we own or may be prevented from using intellectual property necessary for our business.

The development of intellectual property is part of our overall business strategy, and we regard our intellectual property to be an important element of our success. We rely primarily on trade secret, trademark, domain name, copyright, and contract law to protect the intellectual property and proprietary technology we own. We also actively pursue business opportunities in the United States and in international jurisdictions involving the licensing of our trademarks to third parties. It is possible that third parties may copy or otherwise obtain and use our intellectual property or proprietary technology without authorization or otherwise infringe on our rights. For example, while we have a policy of entering into confidentiality, intellectual property invention assignment, and/or non-competition and non-solicitation agreements or restrictions with our employees, independent

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contractors, and business partners, such agreements may not provide adequate protection or may be breached, or our proprietary technology may otherwise become available to or be independently developed by our competitors. The laws of some foreign countries may not protect proprietary rights or intellectual property to as great an extent as do the laws of the United States. Despite our efforts to protect our proprietary rights, the unauthorized use or reproduction of our trademarks could diminish the value of our trademarks and our market acceptance, competitive advantages, or goodwill, which could adversely affect our business.

Third parties have alleged and may in the future allege that we are infringing, misappropriating, or otherwise violating their intellectual property rights. Third parties may initiate litigation against us without warning or may send us letters or other communications that make allegations without initiating litigation. We may elect not to respond to these letters or other communications if we believe they are without merit, or we may attempt to resolve these disputes out of court by negotiating a license, but in either case it is possible that such disputes will ultimately result in litigation. Any such claims could interfere with our ability to use technology or intellectual property that is material to the operation of our business. Such claims may be made by competitors seeking to obtain a competitive advantage or by other parties, such as entities that purchase intellectual property assets for the purpose of bringing infringement claims. We also periodically employ individuals who were previously employed by our competitors or potential competitors, and we may therefore be subject to claims that such employees have used or disclosed the alleged trade secrets or other proprietary information of their former employers.

At any time, we may have to rely on litigation to enforce our intellectual property rights, protect our trade secrets, determine the validity and scope of the proprietary rights of others, or defend against claims of infringement or invalidity. Any such litigation, whether successful or unsuccessful, could result in substantial costs and the diversion of resources and the attention of management. If unsuccessful, such litigation could result in the loss of important intellectual property rights, require us to pay substantial damages, subject us to injunctions that prevent us from using certain intellectual property, require us to make admissions that affect our reputation in the marketplace, and require us to enter into license agreements that may not be available on favorable terms or at all. Finally, even if we prevail in any litigation, the remedy may not be commercially meaningful or fully compensate us for the harm we suffer or the costs we incur. Any of the foregoing could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

We are or may become involved in legal proceedings that, if adversely adjudicated or settled, could impact our business and financial condition.

From time to time, we are named in lawsuits or other legal proceedings relating to our respective businesses. Some of these matters involve commercial or contractual disputes, intellectual property claims, legal compliance, personal injury claims, and employment claims. As with all legal proceedings, no assurances can be given as to the outcome of these matters. Moreover, legal proceedings can be expensive and time consuming, and we may not be successful in defending or prosecuting these lawsuits, which could result in settlements or damages that could significantly impact our business, financial condition and results of operations.

Risks Relating to the Completion of the Merger and the WH Acquisition and the Integration of the Company and Former Caesars and William Hill

We may fail to consummate the WH Acquisition or may not consummate it on the terms described herein.

On September 30, 2020, we announced that we had reached an agreement with William Hill plc on the terms of a recommended cash acquisition pursuant to which we would acquire the entire issued and to be issued share capital (other than shares owned by us or held in treasury) of William Hill plc, in an all-cash transaction of approximately £2.9 billion, or $3.7 billion (the “WH Acquisition”). While we received the approval of William Hill plc shareholders and obtained the early termination of the waiting period under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act of 1976 (“HSR Act”), the WH Acquisition remains subject to gaming regulatory approvals. See “The WH Acquisition is subject to the receipt of governmental approvals that may impose conditions that could have an adverse effect on us or, if not obtained, could prevent consummation of the WH Acquisition.” As a result, the possible timing and likelihood of the completion of the WH Acquisition are uncertain, and, accordingly, there can be no assurance that such acquisition will be completed on the expected terms, anticipated schedule or at all.

In the event that we fail to consummate the WH Acquisition, we will have issued a significant number of additional shares of common stock and we will not have acquired the revenue generating assets that will be required to produce the earnings and cash flow we anticipated. As a result, failure to consummate the WH Acquisition would adversely affect our earnings per share and our ability to make distributions to stockholders. If the WH Acquisition is not consummated, we could be subject to a number of risks that may adversely affect our business and the market price of our common stock, including:

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•we will be required to pay costs relating to the WH Acquisition, such as legal, accounting, financial advisory and printing fees, whether or not the WH Acquisition is consummated;

•time and resources committed by our management to matters relating to the WH Acquisition could otherwise have been devoted to pursuing other beneficial opportunities;

•the market price of our common stock could decline to the extent that the current market price reflects a market assumption that the WH Acquisition will be consummated; and

•we would not realize the benefits we expect to realize from consummating the WH Acquisition.

Any increased costs associated with the delay or abandonment of the WH Acquisition, in addition to the impact of COVID-19, may adversely impact our ability to remain in compliance with our covenants contained in the agreements governing our indebtedness and lease obligations, and our liquidity. Moreover, if the WH Acquisition is not consummated, our reputation in our industry and in the investment community could be damaged, and the market price of our common stock could decline.

The WH Acquisition is subject to the receipt of governmental approvals that may impose conditions that could have an adverse effect on us or, if not obtained, could prevent consummation of the WH Acquisition.

Consummation of the WH Acquisition remains subject to gaming regulatory approvals, including, without limitation, including, among others, the Gaming Board For the Bahamas, Indiana Gaming Commission, Nevada Gaming Control Board and Gaming Commission, and New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement. Additionally, the combination requires the English High Court's final approval and administrative and post-closing approvals from other US and international agencies. There can be no assurance that these approvals will be obtained and that the other conditions to consummating the WH Acquisition will be satisfied.

In addition, the governmental authorities from which the regulatory approvals are required may impose conditions on the consummation of the WH Acquisition or require changes to the terms of the WH Acquisition or agreements to be entered into in connection with the WH Acquisition. Such conditions or changes and the process of obtaining regulatory approvals could have the effect of delaying or impeding consummation of the WH Acquisition or of imposing additional costs or limitations on us following consummation of the WH Acquisition, any of which might have an adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

The integration of the Company and Former Caesars and William Hill may present significant challenges. We cannot be sure that we will be able to realize the anticipated benefits of the Merger and the WH Acquisition in the anticipated time frame or at all.

Our ability to realize the anticipated benefits of the Merger and the WH Acquisition will significantly depends on our ability to integrate the businesses of Former Caesars and William Hill into the Company in the anticipated time frame or at all. The combination of independent businesses is a complex, costly and time-consuming process. As a result, we are required to devote significant management attention and resources to integrating the business practices and operations of Former Caesars into those of the Company and we expect that our acquisition of William Hill will present similar challenges. The integration process may disrupt the businesses and, if implemented ineffectively or inefficiently, would preclude realization of the full benefits expected by us. The failure to successfully integrate Former Caesars and William Hill into the Company and to manage the challenges presented by the integration process successfully may result in an interruption of, or loss of momentum in, the business of the Company, which may have the effect of depressing the market price of our common stock.

Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Information

This Annual Report on Form 10-K includes “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. Forward-looking statements include statements regarding our strategies, objectives and plans for future development or acquisitions of properties or operations, as well as expectations, future operating results, trends and other information that is not historical information. When used in this report, the terms or phrases such as “anticipates,” “believes,” “projects,” “plans,” “intends,” “expects,” “might,” “may,” “estimates,” “could,” “should,” “would,” “will likely continue,” and variations of such words or similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. Specifically, forward-looking statements may include, among others, statements concerning:

•the impact of COVID-19 on our business and financial condition;

•projections of future results of operations or financial condition;

•our ability to consummate the acquisition of William Hill and the announced dispositions of certain of our properties, including required divestitures of certain properties located in Indiana and MontBleu;

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•expectations regarding our business and results of operations of our existing casino properties and prospects for future development;

•expectations regarding trends that will affect our markets and the gaming industry generally, including expansion of internet betting and gaming, and the impact of those trends on our business and results of operations;

•our ability to comply with the covenants in the agreements governing our outstanding indebtedness and leases;

•our ability to meet our projected debt service obligations, operating expenses, and maintenance capital expenditures;

•expectations regarding availability of capital resources;

•our intention to pursue development opportunities and additional acquisitions and divestitures;

•our ability to realize the anticipated benefits of the acquisition of Former Caesars, William Hill and future development, acquisition and partnership opportunities; and

•the impact of regulation on our business and our ability to receive and maintain necessary approvals for our existing properties and future projects and operation of online sportsbook, poker and gaming.

Any forward-looking statements are based upon underlying assumptions, including any assumptions mentioned with the specific statements, as of the date such statements were made. Such assumptions are in turn based upon internal estimates and analyses of market conditions and trends, management plans and strategies, economic conditions and other factors. Such forward-looking statements are only predictions and involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond our control, and are subject to change. By their nature, forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties because they relate to events and depend upon future circumstances that may not occur. Actual results and trends may differ materially from any future results, trends, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such statements. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date they are made, and we assume no duty to update forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements should not be regarded as a representation by us or any other person that the forward-looking statements will be achieved. Undue reliance should not be placed on any forward-looking statements. Some of the contingencies and uncertainties to which any forward-looking statement contained herein are subject include, but are not limited to, the following:

•the extent and duration of the impact of COVID-19 on the Company’s business, financial results and liquidity;

•the impact and cost of, and our ability to adapt to, evolving operating procedures in response to continued developments with COVID-19;

•the impact of actions we have undertaken to reduce costs and improve efficiencies to mitigate losses as a result of the COVID-19 public health emergency, which could negatively impact guest loyalty and our ability to attract and retain our employees;

•the impact of the COVID-19 public health emergency and resulting unemployment and changes in general economic conditions on discretionary consumer spending and customer demand;

•our substantial indebtedness and significant financial commitments, including our obligations under our lease arrangements, could adversely affect our results of operations and our ability to service such obligations, react to changes in our markets and pursue development and acquisition opportunities;

•restrictions and limitations in agreements governing our debt and leased properties could significantly affect our ability to operate our business and our liquidity;

•risks relating to payment of a significant portion of our cash flow as debt service and rent under the leases of our casino properties with VICI and GLPI;

•financial, operational, regulatory or other potential challenges that may arise as a result of leasing of a number of our properties;

•our ability to adapt to the very competitive environments we operate in as we face increasing competition, including through legalization of online betting and gaming;

•uncertainty regarding the expansion of online betting and gaming, including the impact of such expansion on our brick-and-mortar business and our ability to compete in the online market;

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•the ability to identify suitable acquisition opportunities and realize growth and cost synergies from any future acquisitions;

•the impact of governmental regulation on our business and the cost of complying or the impact of failing to comply with such regulations;

•changes in gaming taxes and fees in jurisdictions in which we operate;

•risks relating to pending claims or future claims that may be brought against us;

•changes in interest rates and capital and credit markets;

•our ability to comply with certain covenants in our debt documents and lease arrangements;

•our ability to collect gaming receivables from our credit customers;

•the effect of disruptions or corruption to our information technology and other systems and infrastructure;

•the effect of seasonal fluctuations;

•our particular sensitivity to energy prices;

•deterioration in our reputation or the reputation of our brands;

•our ability to attract and retain customers;

•our ability to protect the intellectual property rights we own;

•our ability to expand our sportsbook business and engage in online sportsbook, casino gaming and poker;

•weather or road conditions limiting access to our properties;

•the effect of war, terrorist activity, acts of violence, natural disasters, public health emergencies and other catastrophic events;

•the intense competition to attract and retain management and key employees in the gaming industry; and

•Other factors described in Part II, Item 1A. “Risk Factors” contained herein and our reports on Form 10-Q and Form 8-K filed with the SEC.

In addition, the acquisition of William Hill and the announced dispositions of certain of our properties, including required divestitures, create additional risks, uncertainties and other important factors, including but not limited to:

•the possibility that the proposed transactions are not consummated when expected or at all because required regulatory or other approvals are not received or other conditions to the consummation thereof are not satisfied on a timely basis or at all;

•the possibility that one or more of such transactions do not close on the terms described herein or that we are required to modify aspects of one or more of such transactions to obtain, or otherwise take action to satisfy conditions imposed in connection with, required regulatory approvals;

•risks associated with increased leverage as a result of the proposed acquisition of William Hill;

•the possibility that the anticipated benefits of the proposed transactions are not realized when expected or at all;

•the incurrence of significant transaction and acquisition-related costs and the possibility that the transactions may be more expensive to complete than expected;

•competitive responses to the proposed transactions;

•legislative, regulatory and economic developments;

•the ability to retain certain of our key employees and William Hills’ key employees;

•the outcome of legal proceedings that may be instituted as a result of the proposed transactions;

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•the impact of the proposed transactions, or the failure to consummate the proposed transactions, on our stock price;

•diversion of management’s attention from our ongoing operations;

•the impact of the announcement or consummation of the proposed transactions on the Company’s relationships with third parties, which may make it more difficult to maintain business relationships; and

•other risks and uncertainties described in Part II, Item 1A. “Risk Factors” contained herein and our reports on Form 10-K, Form 10-Q and Form 8-K filed with the SEC.

In light of these and other risks, uncertainties and assumptions, the forward-looking events discussed in this report might not occur. These forward-looking statements speak only as of the date on which this statement is made, even if subsequently made available on our website or otherwise, and we do not intend to update publicly any forward-looking statement to reflect events or circumstances that occur after the date on which the statement is made, except as may be required by law.

You should also be aware that while we from time to time communicate with securities analysts, we do not disclose to them any material non-public information, internal forecasts or other confidential business information. Therefore, you should not assume that we agree with any statement or report issued by any analyst, irrespective of the content of the statement or report. To the extent that reports issued by securities analysts contain projections, forecasts or opinions, those reports are not our responsibility and are not endorsed by us.

Item 1B.    Unresolved Staff Comments.

None.

Item 2.    Properties.

As of December 31, 2020, the following are our properties, including those that were sold during the year. All amounts are approximations.

Property	Location	Casino Space– Sq. Ft.	Slot Machines	Table Games	Hotel Rooms and Suites
Las Vegas Segment
Owned-Domestic
Bally’s Las Vegas (a)	Las Vegas, NV	68,400	890	70	2,810
The Cromwell (a)	Las Vegas, NV	41,600	350	50	190
Flamingo Las Vegas (a)	Las Vegas, NV	72,300	1,090	90	3,450
The LINQ Hotel & Casino (a)	Las Vegas, NV	36,300	710	50	2,240
Paris Las Vegas (a)	Las Vegas, NV	95,300	950	100	2,920
Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino (a)	Las Vegas, NV	64,500	1,070	110	2,500
Leased
Caesars Palace Las Vegas (a)	Las Vegas, NV	124,200	1,560	170	3,970
Harrah’s Las Vegas (a)	Las Vegas, NV	88,800	1,310	90	2,540
Rio All-Suite Hotel & Casino (a)	Las Vegas, NV	117,300	1,050	70	2,520
Regional Segment
Owned-Domestic
Circus Circus Reno	Reno, NV	63,100	350	—	1,570
Eldorado Gaming Scioto Downs	Columbus, OH	142,000	2,160	—	—
Eldorado Resort Casino Reno	Reno, NV	71,500	790	30	810
Eldorado Resort Casino Shreveport (b)	Shreveport, LA	28,900	810	30	400
Grand Victoria Casino	Elgin, IL	36,700	1,090	30	—
Hoosier Park (a)	Anderson, IN	55,300	1,480	30	—
Indiana Grand (a)	Shelbyville, IN	80,100	1,090	60	—
Isle of Capri Casino Boonville	Boonville, MO	26,000	860	20	140
Isle of Capri Casino Hotel Lake Charles (c)	Westlake, LA	26,200	1,180	50	490
Isle of Capri Casino Kansas City (d)	Kansas City, MO	39,800	890	10	—
Isle of Capri Casino Lula	Lula, MS	57,000	860	20	490
Isle Casino Hotel - Black Hawk	Black Hawk, CO	28,900	850	20	400

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Property	Location	Casino Space– Sq. Ft.	Slot Machines	Table Games	Hotel Rooms and Suites
Isle Casino Racing Pompano Park	Pompano Beach, FL	45,000	800	20	—
Lady Luck Casino - Black Hawk	Black Hawk, CO	14,900	380	10	—
Lady Luck Casino Vicksburg (d)	Vicksburg, MS	25,000	580	—	90
Silver Legacy Resort Casino	Reno, NV	90,100	800	30	1,680
Tropicana Evansville (e)	Evansville, IN	46,300	720	20	—
Leased
Bally’s Atlantic City (a)(f)	Atlantic City, NJ	127,200	1,760	120	1,210
Belle of Baton Rouge Casino & Hotel (g)	Baton Rouge, LA	28,500	350	10	290
Caesars Atlantic City (a)	Atlantic City, NJ	113,400	2,130	150	1,140
Caesars Southern Indiana (a)(e)(h)	Elizabeth, IN	74,400	660	80	500
Harrah’s Atlantic City (a)	Atlantic City, NJ	156,300	2,040	160	2,590
Harrah’s Council Bluffs (a)	Council Bluffs, IA	21,400	480	20	250
Harrah’s Gulf Coast (a)	Biloxi, MS	31,900	630	30	500
Harrah’s Joliet (a)	Joliet, IL	39,000	1,090	30	200
Harrah’s Lake Tahoe (a)	Lake Tahoe, NV	53,600	770	60	510
Harrah’s Laughlin (a)	Laughlin, NV	56,400	600	40	1,510
Harrah’s Louisiana Downs (a)(h)(i)	Bossier City, LA	12,000	820	—	—
Harrah’s Metropolis (a)	Metropolis, IL	24,300	450	20	260
Harrah’s New Orleans (a)	New Orleans, LA	101,100	1,380	100	450
Harrah’s North Kansas City (a)	N. Kansas City, MO	60,100	770	60	390
Harrah’s Philadelphia (a)	Chester, PA	110,500	2,270	70	—
Harrah’s Reno (a)(j)	Reno, NV	42,800	590	20	930
Harveys Lake Tahoe (a)	Lake Tahoe, NV	46,700	310	50	740
Horseshoe Bossier City (a)	Bossier City, LA	28,300	1,140	70	600
Horseshoe Council Bluffs (a)	Council Bluffs, IA	59,900	1,370	60	150
Horseshoe Hammond (a)(e)(h)	Hammond, IN	116,500	1,260	110	—
Horseshoe Tunica (a)	Tunica, MS	63,000	980	100	510
Isle Casino Bettendorf (k)	Bettendorf, IA	35,500	640	20	510
Isle Casino Waterloo (k)	Waterloo, IA	37,400	600	20	190
Lumière Place Casino	St. Louis, MO	75,000	1,330	20	490
MontBleu Casino Resort & Spa (b)	Stateline, NV	40,500	210	10	440
Trop Casino Greenville	Greenville, MS	22,800	340	10	—
Tropicana Casino and Resort, Atlantic City	Atlantic City, NJ	121,900	2,360	120	2,360
Tropicana Laughlin Hotel & Casino	Laughlin, NV	43,700	560	10	1,490
Managed, International, CIE Segment
Owned-International
Caesars Cairo (a)(h)	Egypt	6,500	30	20	—
Ramses Casino (a)(h)	Egypt	2,700	40	20	—
Emerald Casino Resort (a)(h)	South Africa	37,400	410	20	190
Alea Glasgow (a)(h)	United Kingdom	22,000	50	20	—
Alea Nottingham (a)(h)	United Kingdom	15,200	50	10	—
The Empire Casino (a)(h)	United Kingdom	20,400	150	40	—
Manchester235 (a)(h)	United Kingdom	—	40	30	—
Playboy Club London (a)(h)	United Kingdom	10,000	20	20	—
Rendezvous Brighton (a)(h)	United Kingdom	15,000	60	20	—
The Sportsman (a)(h)	United Kingdom	5,800	40	10	—
Managed
Harrah’s Ak-Chin (a)	Phoenix, AZ	65,200	830	20	530
Harrah’s Cherokee (a)	Cherokee, NC	191,800	2,100	160	1,110
Harrah’s Cherokee Valley River (a)	Murphy, NC	65,000	700	180	180
Harrah’s Resort Southern California (a)	Funner, CA	72,900	1,110	50	1,090

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Property	Location	Casino Space– Sq. Ft.	Slot Machines	Table Games	Hotel Rooms and Suites
Horseshoe Baltimore (a)(l)	Baltimore, MD	133,300	1,900	210	—
Caesars Windsor (a)	Canada	100,000	470	—	—
Kings & Queens Casino (a)	Egypt	2,100	30	10	—
Caesars Dubai (a)	United Arab Emirates	—	—	—	580

____________________

(a)These properties were acquired from the Merger with Former Caesars on July 20, 2020.

(b)In April 2020, the Company entered into an agreement to sell Eldorado Shreveport and MontBleu. The sale of Eldorado Shreveport closed on December 23, 2020, and the sale of MontBleu is expected to close in the first half of 2021. As of December 31, 2020, MontBleu's assets and liabilities were classified as held for sale.

(c)Hurricane Laura caused severe damage to Isle of Capri Casino Hotel Lake Charles (“Lake Charles”). Lake Charles has been temporarily closed since the end of August 2020 due to damages. The property remains closed until construction of a new land-based casino is complete.

(d)Kansas City and Vicksburg were sold on July 1, 2020.

(e)On October 27, 2020, the Company entered into an agreement to sell Tropicana Evansville, which is expected to close mid-2021 and on December 24, 2020, the Company entered into an agreement to sell Caesars Southern Indiana, which is expected to close in the third quarter of 2021. In addition, the Company plans to enter into an agreement to divest of Horseshoe Hammond prior to December 31, 2021, as the deadline was extended by the Indiana Gaming Commission. As of December 31, 2020, Evansville’s assets and liabilities were classified as held for sale.

(f)Bally's Atlantic City was sold on November 18, 2020.

(g)On December 1, 2020, the Company entered into an agreement to sell Belle of Baton Rouge to Casino Queen Holdings, which is expected to close in mid-2021. As of December 31, 2020, Belle of Baton Rouge's assets and liabilities were classified as held for sale.

(h)As a result of the Merger, these properties met the requirements for presentation as discontinued operations and held for sale as of December 31, 2020.

(i)On September 3, 2020, the Company entered into an agreement to sell Harrah’s Louisiana Downs, which is expected to close in the first half of 2021.

(j)Harrah’s Reno was sold on September 30, 2020.

(k)On October 27, 2020, the Company entered into agreement with GLPI to exchange real estate relating to Isle Casino Bettendorf and Isle Casino Hotel Waterloo for the real estate relating to Evansville. The exchange closed on December 18, 2020.

(l)As of December 31, 2020, Horseshoe Baltimore was 44.3% owned and held as an equity-method investment.

In addition to our properties listed above, other domestic and international properties, including Harrah’s Northern California, are authorized to use the brands and marks of Caesars Entertainment, Inc.

Other properties of ours include The LINQ Promenade, next to The LINQ Hotel & Casino (the “LINQ”) and the CAESARS FORUM conference center in our Las Vegas segment. The LINQ Promenade is an open-air dining, entertainment, and retail promenade located on the east side of the Las Vegas Strip that features the High Roller, a 550-foot observation wheel, and the Fly LINQ Zipline attraction. The CAESARS FORUM is a 550,000 square feet conference center with 300,000 square feet of flexible meeting space, two of the largest pillarless ballrooms in the world and direct access to the LINQ.

Item 3.    Legal Proceedings.

For a discussion of our “Legal Proceedings,” refer to Note 11 to our consolidated financial statements located elsewhere in this Annual Report on Form 10-K.

Item 4.    Mine Safety Disclosures.

Not applicable.

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PART II

Item 5.    Market for Registrants’ Common Equity, Related Stockholder Matters and Issuer Purchases of Equity Securities.

Our Common Stock is quoted on the NASDAQ Stock Market under the symbol “CZR”. As of February 22, 2021, there were approximately 341 holders of record of our common stock.

We have not paid any cash dividends on our common stock. We intend to retain all of our earnings to finance the development of our business, and thus, do not anticipate paying cash dividends on our common stock for the foreseeable future. Payment of any cash dividends in the future will be at the discretion of our Board and will depend upon, among other things, our future earnings, operations and capital requirements, our general financial condition, general business conditions and restrictions that may be in place under our borrowing arrangements or existing lease agreements.

Equity Compensation Plan Information

We maintain long-term incentive plans which allow for granting stock-based compensation awards for directors, employees, officers, and consultants or advisers who render services to the Company or its subsidiaries, based on Company Common Stock, including performance-based and incentive stock options, restricted stock or restricted stock units (“RSUs”), performance stock units, market-based stock units (“MSUs”), stock appreciation rights, and other stock-based awards or dividend equivalents. See Note 15 for a description of our stock-based compensation plans.

The following table sets forth information as of December 31, 2020, with respect to compensation plans under which equity securities that we have authorized for issuance.

Plan Category	Number of securities to be issued upon exercise of outstanding options, warrants and rights (1)	Weighted average exercise price of outstanding options, warrants and rights (2)		Number of securities remaining available for future issuance under equity compensation plans (excluding securities reflected in column (a))
	(a)	(b)		(c)
Equity compensation plans approved by security holders	3,537,404	$	22.57	5,614,787

___________________

(1)Includes (a) 176,724 shares of common stock issuable upon exercise of outstanding options with a weighted-average exercise price of $22.57 (of which, 111,478 shares were assumed through the Merger with a weighted-average exercise price of $28.91), and (b) 3,360,680 unvested restricted stock units (“RSUs”), performance stock units (“PSUs”), and market-based units (“MSUs”), (of which 2,001,953 RSUs and MSUs were assumed through the Merger).

(2)RSUs, PSUs, and MSUs do not have an exercise price and therefore are not included in the calculation of the weighted-average exercise price.

Common Stock Offerings

On June 19, 2020, we completed the public offering of 20,700,000 shares (including the shares sold pursuant to the underwriters’ overallotment option) of Company Common Stock, at an offering price of $39.00 per share, which provided $772 million of proceeds, net of fees and estimated expenses of $35 million.

On October 1, 2020, we completed the public offering of 35,650,000 shares (including the shares sold pursuant to the underwriters’ overallotment option) of Company Common Stock, at an offering price of $56.00 per share, which provided $1.9 billion of proceeds, net of fees and estimated expenses of $50 million.

Share Repurchase Program

In November 2018, our Board authorized a common stock repurchase program of up to $150 million of stock (the “Share Repurchase Program”) pursuant to which we may, from time to time, repurchase shares of common stock on the open market (either with or without a 10b5-1 plan) or through privately negotiated transactions. The Share Repurchase Program has no time limit and may be suspended or discontinued at any time without notice. There is no minimum number of shares of common stock that we are required to repurchase under the Share Repurchase Program. 

As of December 31, 2020, we have acquired 223,823 shares of common stock under this program since 2018 at an aggregate value of $9 million and an average of $40.80 per share. No shares were repurchased during the years ended December 31, 2020 or 2019.

29

Transactions Related to Convertible Notes issued by Former Caesars

Former Caesars issued $1.1 billion aggregate principal amount of 5% convertible senior notes maturing in 2024 (the “5% Convertible Notes”). The 5% Convertible Notes are convertible into the weighted average of the number of shares of Company Common Stock and amount of cash actually received per share by holders of common stock of Former Caesars that made elections for consideration in the Merger. As of December 31, 2020, we have paid approximately $903 million and issued approximately 10.8 million shares related to conversions of the 5% Convertible Notes and the remaining outstanding balance could result in the additional issuance of an aggregate of 4.5 million shares of Company Common Stock.

Recent Sales of Unregistered Securities

None.

Stock Performance Graph

The following graph demonstrates a comparison of cumulative total returns of the Company, the Standard & Poor’s 500 Stock Index (“S&P 500”) and the Dow Jones US Gambling Index for the period since our common stock began trading on September 22, 2014. The following graph assumes $100 invested in each of the above groups and the reinvestment of dividends, if applicable.

Past stock price performance is not necessarily indicative of future results. The performance graph should not be deemed filed or incorporated by reference into any other of our filings under the Securities Act of 1933 or the Exchange Act of 1934, unless we specifically incorporate the performance graph by reference therein.

Item 6.    Selected Financial Data.

Not used.

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Item 7.    Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations.

The following discussion should be read in conjunction with, and is qualified in its entirety by, the audited consolidated financial statements and the notes thereto and other financial information included elsewhere in this Annual Report on Form 10-K.

Caesars Entertainment, Inc., a Delaware corporation formerly known as Eldorado Resorts, Inc. (“ERI” or “Eldorado”), is referred to as the “Company,” “CEI,” “Caesars,” or the “Registrant,” and together with its subsidiaries may also be referred to as “we,” “us” or “our.”

We also refer to (i) our Consolidated Financial Statements as our “Financial Statements,” (ii) our Consolidated Statements of Operations and Consolidated Statements of Comprehensive Income (Loss) as our “Statements of Operations,” (iii) our Consolidated Balance Sheets as our “Balance Sheets,” and (iv) our Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows as our “Statements of Cash Flows.” References to numbered “Notes” refer to Notes to our Consolidated Financial Statements included in Item 8.

Objective

This Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations (“MD&A”) is intended to be a narrative explanation of the financial statements and other statistical data that should be read in conjunction with the accompanying financial statements to enhance an investor’s understanding of our financial condition, changes in financial condition and results of operations. Our objectives are: (i) to provide a narrative explanation of our financial statements that will enable investors to see the Company through the eyes of management; (ii) to enhance the overall financial disclosure and provide the context within which financial information should be analyzed; and (iii) to provide information about the quality of, and potential variability of, our earnings and cash flows so that investors can ascertain the likelihood that past performance is indicative of future performance.

Overview

We are a geographically diversified gaming and hospitality company that was founded in 1973 by the Carano family with the opening of the Eldorado Hotel Casino in Reno, Nevada. We partnered with MGM Resorts International to build Silver Legacy Resort Casino in Reno, Nevada in 1993 and, beginning in 2005, we grew through a series of acquisitions, including the acquisition of Eldorado Shreveport in 2005, MTR Gaming Group, Inc. in 2014, Circus Circus Reno (“Circus Reno”) and the 50% membership interest in the Silver Legacy that was owned by MGM Resorts International in 2015, Isle of Capri Casinos, Inc. (“Isle” or “Isle of Capri”) in 2017 and Grand Victoria Casino (“Elgin”) and Tropicana Entertainment, Inc. (“Tropicana”) in 2018. Prior to the Merger (as defined below), we operated 23 gaming facilities in 11 states, with no international operations, featuring approximately 23,900 slot machines, video lottery terminals (“VLTs”) and e-tables, approximately 660 table games and approximately 11,300 hotel rooms.

On July 20, 2020, we completed the merger with Caesars Entertainment Corporation (“Former Caesars”) pursuant to which Former Caesars became our wholly-owned subsidiary (the “Merger”). As a result of the Merger, we currently own, lease or manage an aggregate of 54 domestic properties in 16 states with approximately 54,600 slot machines, VLTs and e-tables, approximately 3,200 table games and approximately 47,700 hotel rooms as of December 31, 2020. We also have international operations in five countries outside of the U.S. In addition, we have other domestic and international properties that are authorized to use the brands and marks of Caesars Entertainment, Inc., as well as other non-gaming properties. Upon completion of our previously announced sales, or expected sales, of certain gaming properties, we expect that we will continue to own, lease or manage 48 properties. Our primary source of revenue is generated by gaming operations, and we utilize hotels, restaurants, bars, entertainment, racing, sportsbook offerings, retail shops and other services to attract customers to our properties.

In connection with the Merger, Caesars Entertainment Corporation changed its name to “Caesars Holdings, Inc.” and Eldorado Resorts, Inc. converted into a Delaware corporation and changed its name to “Caesars Entertainment, Inc.” In addition, effective as of July 21, 2020 our ticker symbol on the NASDAQ Stock Market changed from “ERI” to “CZR”. In connection with the Merger, we also entered into a Master Transaction Agreement (the “MTA”) with VICI Properties L.P., a Delaware limited partnership (“VICI”), pursuant to which, among other things, we agreed to consummate certain sale and leaseback transactions and amend certain lease agreements with VICI and/or its affiliates, with respect to certain property described in the MTA. See Note 3 for further discussion of the Merger and related transactions.

As of December 31, 2020, we owned 20 of our casinos and leased 29 casinos in the U.S. We have leases with GLP Capital, L.P., the operating partnership of Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. (“GLPI”), including our Master Lease that we entered into in connection with the acquisition of Tropicana on October 1, 2018 (as amended, the “GLPI Master Lease”) and our Lumière lease. Eight of the leased casinos are subject to leases with GLPI, and we lease an additional 21 casinos from other third parties, including VICI. See descriptions under the “GLPI Master Lease” and “VICI Leases.”

31

We periodically divest assets that we do not consider core to our business to raise capital or, in some cases, to comply with conditions, terms, obligations or restrictions imposed by antitrust, gaming and other regulatory entities. A summary of recently completed and planned divestitures of our properties as of December 31, 2020 is as follows:

Segment	Property	Date Sold	Location
Regional	Presque Isle Downs & Casino (“Presque”)	January 11, 2019	Pennsylvania
Regional	Lady Luck Casino Nemacolin (“Nemacolin”)	March 8, 2019	Pennsylvania
Regional	Mountaineer Casino, Racetrack and Resort (“Mountaineer”)	December 6, 2019	West Virginia
Regional	Isle Casino Cape Girardeau (“Cape Girardeau”)	December 6, 2019	Missouri
Regional	Lady Luck Casino Caruthersville (“Caruthersville”)	December 6, 2019	Missouri
Regional	Isle of Capri Casino Kansas City (“Kansas City”)	July 1, 2020 (a)	Missouri
Regional	Lady Luck Casino Vicksburg (“Vicksburg”)	July 1, 2020 (a)	Mississippi
Regional	Eldorado Resort Casino Shreveport (“Eldorado Shreveport”)	December 23, 2020 (b)	Louisiana
Regional	MontBleu Casino Resort & Spa (“MontBleu”)	N/A (b)	Nevada
Regional	Tropicana Evansville (“Evansville”)	N/A (c)	Indiana
Regional	Belle of Baton Rouge Casino & Hotel (“Baton Rouge”)	N/A (d)	Louisiana
Discontinued operations (e):
Regional	Harrah’s Reno	September 30, 2020 (f)	Nevada
Regional	Bally’s Atlantic City	November 18, 2020 (g)	New Jersey
Regional	Harrah’s Louisiana Downs	N/A (h)	Louisiana
Regional	Caesars Southern Indiana	N/A (c)(i)	Indiana
Regional	Horseshoe Hammond	N/A (c)	Indiana
Managed, International, CIE	Emerald Resort & Casino	N/A	South Africa
Managed, International, CIE	Caesars Entertainment UK	N/A	United Kingdom

(a)We closed the sales of Kansas City and Vicksburg on July 1, 2020 and recorded a gain of approximately $8 million during the year ended December 31, 2020.

(b)On April 24, 2020, we entered into a definitive purchase agreement with Twin River Worldwide Holdings, Inc. (“Twin River” or “Bally’s Corporation”) and certain of its affiliates for the sale of the equity interests of Eldorado Resort Casino Shreveport Joint Venture and Columbia Properties Tahoe, LLC, the entities that hold Eldorado Shreveport and MontBleu, respectively, for aggregate consideration of $155 million, subject to a customary working capital adjustment. The definitive agreement provides that the consummation of the sale is subject to satisfaction of customary conditions, including receipt of required regulatory approvals. The sale of Eldorado Shreveport closed on December 23, 2020 for $140 million, subject to a customary working capital adjustment and we recognized a gain of approximately $29 million during the year ended December 31, 2020. The sale of MontBleu is expected to close in the first half of 2021. MontBleu met the requirements for presentation as assets held for sale as of December 31, 2020. However, the pending divestitures of MontBleu did not meet the requirements for presentation as discontinued operations and MontBleu’s results of operations are included in income from continuing operations in the periods presented. As a result of the agreement to sell MontBleu, an impairment charge totaling $45 million was recorded during the year ended December 31, 2020 due to the carrying value exceeding the estimated net sales proceeds from the sale.

(c)In connection with its review of the Merger, the Indiana Gaming Commission determined on July 16, 2020 that, as a condition to their approval of the Merger, we are required to enter into agreements to divest of three properties within the state of Indiana in order to avoid undue economic concentration. On October 27, 2020, the Company entered into an agreement to sell Evansville to GLPI and Twin River for $480 million in cash, subject to a customary working capital adjustment. The sale is subject to satisfaction of customary conditions, including receipt of required regulatory approvals and is expected to close in mid-2021. In addition, on December 24, 2020, the Company entered into an agreement to divest of Caesars Southern Indiana (See (i) below). We expect to enter into an agreement to sell Horseshoe Hammond prior to December 31, 2021, as the deadline was extended by the Indiana Gaming Commission. Evansville met the requirements for presentation as assets held for sale as of December 31, 2020, while Caesars Southern Indiana and Horseshoe Hammond met the requirements for presentation as held for sale and discontinued operations.

32

(d)On December 1, 2020, the Company entered into an agreement to sell the Baton Rouge to CQ Holding Company, Inc. Pursuant to the terms of the GLPI Master Lease, Baton Rouge will be removed from the GLPI Master Lease, and the rent payments to GLPI will remain unchanged. GLPI will retain ownership of the real estate of Baton Rouge. As a result of the agreement to sell Baton Rouge, an impairment charge totaling $50 million was recorded during the year ended December 31, 2020 due to the carrying value exceeding the estimated net sales proceeds. The transaction is expected to close in mid-2021 and is subject to regulatory approvals and other customary closing conditions.

(e)These Former Caesars properties met held for sale criteria as of the acquisition date. The sales of these properties have or are expected to close within one year from the date of the closing of the Merger and the properties are classified as discontinued operations.

(f)On September 30, 2020, the Company and VICI completed the sale of Harrah’s Reno to and affiliate of CAI Investments for $42 million. The proceeds from the sale were split between the Company and VICI, and the Company received $8 million of net proceeds.

(g)On November 18, 2020, the Company and VICI completed the sale of Bally's Atlantic City to Bally’s Corporation for $25 million. The proceeds from the sale were split between the Company and VICI, and the Company received $5 million of net proceeds. As a result of the sale, the Company agreed to reimburse Bally’s Corporation $30 million for capital expenditures required at Bally’s Atlantic City and recorded a liability within Accrued other liabilities and recorded a charge to Discontinued operations, net of income taxes. Our commitment will be satisfied by adjusting obligations under certain sportsbook operating agreements between Bally’s Corporation and the Company following our expected acquisition of William Hill. In addition, on October 9, 2020, we reached an agreement to sell the Bally’s brand to Bally’s Corporation for $20 million, while retaining the right to use the brand within Bally’s Las Vegas into perpetuity.

(h)On September 3, 2020, the Company and VICI entered into an agreement with Rubico Acquisition Corp. to sell Harrah’s Louisiana Downs for $22 million, subject to a customary working capital adjustment, where the proceeds will be split between the Company and VICI. The sale is subject to satisfaction of customary conditions, including receipt of required regulatory approvals and is expected to close in the first half of 2021.

(i)On December 24, 2020, the Company entered into agreement to sell Caesars Southern Indiana to the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians (“EBCI”) for $250 million, subject to a customary working capital adjustment. Caesar’s annual payments to VICI under the Regional Lease will decline by $33 million upon closing of the transaction. Additionally, effective as of the closing of the transaction, Caesars and EBCI will enter into a long-term agreement for the continued use of the Caesars brand and Caesars Rewards loyalty program at Caesars Southern Indiana. The sale is subject to satisfaction of customary conditions, including receipt of required regulatory approvals and is expected to close in the third quarter of 2021.

Merger and Acquisitions Related Activities

Merger with Caesars Entertainment Corporation

On July 20, 2020, the Merger was consummated and Former Caesars became a wholly-owned subsidiary of ours. The strategic rationale for the Merger includes, but is not limited to, the following:

•Creation of the largest owner, operator and manager of domestic gaming assets;

•Diversification of the Company’s domestic footprint;

•Access to iconic brands, rewards programs and new gaming opportunities expected to enhance customer experience; and

•Realization of significant identified synergies.

Based on the closing price of $38.24 per share of the Company’s common stock, par value $0.00001 per share (“Company Common Stock”), reported on the NASDAQ Stock Market on July 20, 2020, the aggregate implied value of the aggregate merger consideration paid to former holders of Former Caesars common stock in connection with the Merger was approximately $8.5 billion, including approximately $2.4 billion in the Company Common Stock and approximately $6.1 billion in cash. The aggregate merger consideration transferred also included approximately $2.4 billion related to the repayment of certain outstanding debt balances of Former Caesars and approximately $48 million of other consideration paid, which includes $19 million related to a transaction success fee, for the benefit of Former Caesars, and $29 million for the replacement of equity awards of certain employees attributable to services provided prior to the Merger.

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Pursuant to the Merger, each share of Former Caesars common stock was converted into the right to receive, at the election of the holder thereof and subject to proration, approximately $12.41 of cash consideration or approximately 0.3085 shares of Company Common Stock, with a value equal to approximately $12.41 in cash (based on the volume weighted average price per share of Company Common Stock for the 10 trading days ending on July 16, 2020). Following the consummation of the Merger, stockholders of the Company and stockholders of Former Caesars held approximately 61% and 39%, respectively, of the outstanding shares of Company Common Stock.

We recognized acquisition-related transaction costs in connection with the Merger of $160 million for the year ended December 31, 2020, and $80 million for the year ended December 31, 2019.

Tropicana Entertainment Inc.

On October 1, 2018, we acquired Tropicana in a cash transaction valued at $1.9 billion (the “Tropicana Acquisition”). At the closing of the transaction Tropicana became a wholly-owned subsidiary of ours. Immediately prior to our acquisition, Tropicana sold Tropicana Aruba Resort and GLP Capital, L.P., a wholly-owned subsidiary of GLPI, acquired substantially all of Tropicana’s real estate, other than the real estate underlying MontBleu and Lumière, for approximately $964 million. We acquired the real estate underlying Lumière for $246 million with the proceeds of a $246 million loan from GLPI. We funded the remaining consideration payable with our cash on hand and cash on hand at Tropicana, borrowings under our revolving credit facility and proceeds from our offering of $600 million of 6% senior notes due 2026.

Substantially concurrently with the acquisition of the real estate portfolio by GLPI, we entered into a triple net master lease for the Tropicana properties acquired by GLPI (“GLPI Master Lease”). The initial annual rent under the terms of the lease was approximately $88 million and is subject to annual escalation. We do not have the ability to terminate the obligations under the Master Lease prior to its expiration without GLPI’s consent.

In connection with the purchase of the real estate related to Lumière, Tropicana St. Louis RE LLC, a wholly-owned subsidiary of ours, and GLPI entered into a loan agreement, dated as of October 1, 2018 (the “Lumière Loan”), relating to a loan of $246 million by GLPI to Tropicana St. Louis RE to fund the purchase price of the real estate underlying Lumière. The Lumière Loan was guaranteed by us, bore interest at a rate equal to 9.27% and had a maturity date of October 1, 2020. On June 24, 2020, the Company received approval from Missouri Gaming Commission to sell the real estate underlying Lumière to GLPI and leaseback the property under a long-term financing obligation. As of December 31, 2020, the Lumière loan has been satisfied in full and the real estate has been refinanced under a financing obligation.

Grand Victoria Casino

On August 7, 2018, we completed the acquisition (the “Elgin Acquisition”) of the Grand Victoria Casino (“Elgin”) in Elgin, Illinois. We purchased Elgin for $329 million, including a working capital adjustment totaling $1 million. The Elgin Acquisition was financed using cash on hand and borrowings under the Company’s revolving credit facility.

Partnerships and Acquisition Opportunities

William Hill

In September 2018, we entered into a 25-year agreement, which became effective January 29, 2019, with William Hill plc and William Hill U.S. Holdco. Inc. (“William Hill US”), its U.S. subsidiary (together, “William Hill”) pursuant to which we (i) granted to William Hill the right to conduct betting activities, including operating sportsbooks, in retail channels and under our first skin and third skin for online channels with respect to our current and future properties located in the United States and the territories and possessions of the United States, including Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands and (ii) agreed that William Hill will have the right to conduct real money online gaming activities utilizing our second skin available with respect to properties in such territories. Pursuant to the terms of the agreement, we received a 20% ownership interest in William Hill US with an initial value of approximately $129 million as well as 13 million ordinary shares of William Hill plc with an initial value of approximately $27 million upon closing of the transaction in January 2019. We granted William Hill the right to the use of certain skins in exchange for an equity method investment. The fair value of the William Hill US and William Hill plc shares received has been deferred and is recognized as revenue on a straight-line basis over the 25-year agreement term. The amortization of deferred revenues associated with our equity interests is included in other revenue within our Corporate and Other segment. Additionally, we receive a profit share from the operations of betting and other gaming activities associated with our properties.

On September 30, 2020, we announced that we had reached an agreement with William Hill plc on the terms of a recommended cash acquisition pursuant to which we would acquire the entire issued and to be issued share capital (other than shares owned by us or held in treasury) of William Hill plc, in an all-cash transaction of approximately £2.9 billion, or $3.7 billion. To

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provide liquidity to fund the cash purchase price for the proposed acquisition, we entered into various financing transactions. On September 25, 2020, we borrowed $900 million under the CEI Revolving Credit Facility (defined below), which was fully repaid in October 2020. On October 1, 2020, we raised an additional $1.9 billion through a public offering of Company Common Stock which was deposited into an escrow account. As of December 31, 2020, these funds in escrow were classified as restricted cash and will remain restricted until the proposed acquisition of William Hill plc closes. In order to manage the risk of appreciation of the GBP denominated purchase price the Company has entered into foreign exchange forward contracts.

In connection with the proposed acquisition of William Hill plc, on September 29, 2020, the Company entered into a debt financing commitment letter pursuant to which the lenders party thereto have committed to arrange and provide a newly formed subsidiary of the Company with (a) a £1.0 billion senior secured 540-day bridge loan facility, (b) a £116 million senior secured 540-day revolving credit facility and (c) a £503 million senior secured 60-day bridge loan facility (collectively, the “Debt Financing”). The proceeds of the Debt Financing will be used (i) to pay a portion of the cash consideration for the proposed acquisition, (ii) to refinance certain of William Hill plc's and its subsidiaries' existing debt, (iii) to pay fees and expenses related to the acquisition and related transactions and (iv) for working capital and general corporate purposes.

Pending negotiation of the loan agreement for the Debt Financing, on October 6, 2020, our newly formed subsidiary entered into a £1.5 billion Interim Facilities Agreement (the “Interim Facilities Agreement”) with Deutsche Bank AG, London Branch and JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A. to provide: (a) a 90-day £1.0 billion interim asset sale bridge facility and (b) a 90-day £503 million interim cash confirmation bridge facility.

The transaction is conditioned on, among other things, the approval of William Hill plc shareholders, which was received on November 19, 2020, and receipt of required regulatory approvals. On December 28, 2020, we obtained the early termination of the waiting period under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act of 1976 (“HSR Act”) relating to the proposed combination with William Hill plc. A final UK court hearing is scheduled for the last week of March 2021 and we expect to close the acquisition shortly thereafter.

The Stars Group/Flutter Entertainment

In November 2018, the Company entered into a 20-year agreement with The Stars Group Inc. (“TSG”) pursuant to which we agreed to provide TSG with options to obtain access to our second skin for online sports wagering and third skin for real money online gaming and poker, in each case with respect to states in which our properties are located. Under the terms of the agreement, we received 1 million TSG common shares. The fair value of the shares received has been deferred and is recognized as revenue on a straight-line basis over the 20-year agreement term. All shares are subject to a 1 year restriction on transfer from the date they are received. On May 5, 2020, Flutter Entertainment plc (“Flutter”) completed the acquisition of all of the issued and outstanding common shares of TSG in exchange for 0.2253 Flutter shares per common share of TSG. In addition, we receive a revenue share from the operation of the applicable verticals by TSG under our licenses. In December 2020, the Company sold 121,285 of these Flutter shares for net proceeds of approximately $24 million.

Reportable Segments

Segment results in this MD&A are presented consistent with the way our management assesses the operating results, assesses performance and allocates resources of the Company, which is a consolidated view that adjusts for the effect of certain transactions related to reportable segments within the Company. We view each property as an operating segment. Prior to the Merger, our principal operating activities occurred in five geographic regions and reportable segments: West, Midwest, South, East and Central, in addition to Corporate and Other. Following the Merger, our principal operating activities occur in three regionally-focused reportable segments. The Company’s reportable segments are: (1) Las Vegas, (2) Regional, and (3) Managed, International, CIE, in addition to Corporate and Other. See Item 2. Properties for listing of properties by segment.

Presentation of Financial Information

The financial information included in this Item 7 for the period after our acquisition of Former Caesars on July 20, 2020 is not fully comparable to the periods prior to the acquisition. In addition, the presentation of financial information included in this Item 7 for the periods after our sales and acquisitions of various properties are not fully comparable to the periods prior to their respective sale dates.

This MD&A is intended to provide information to assist in better understanding and evaluating our financial condition and results of operations. Our historical operating results may not be indicative of our future results of operations because of the factors described in the preceding paragraph and the changing competitive landscape in each of our markets, including changes in market and societal trends, as well as by factors discussed elsewhere herein. We recommend that you read this MD&A in conjunction with our audited consolidated financial statements and the notes to those statements included in this Annual Report on Form 10-K.

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Reclassifications

Certain reclassifications of prior year presentations have been made to conform to the current period presentation. Marketing and promotions expense previously disclosed for the years ended December 31, 2019 and 2018 has been reclassified to Casino and pari-mutuel commissions expense and General and administrative expense based on the nature of the expense.

Key Performance Metrics

Our primary source of revenue is generated by our gaming operations, but we use our hotels, restaurants, bars, entertainment, retail shops, racing, sportsbook offerings and other services to attract customers to our properties. Our operating results are highly dependent on the volume and quality of customers visiting and staying at our properties. Key performance metrics include volume indicators such as table games drop and slot handle, which refer to amounts wagered by our customers. The amount of volume we retain, which is not fully controllable by us, is recognized as casino revenues and is referred to as our win or hold. In addition, hotel occupancy and price per room designated by average daily rate (“ADR”) are key indicators for our hotel business. Our calculation of ADR consists of the average price of occupied rooms per day including the impact of resort fees and complimentary rooms. Complimentary room rates are determined based on an analysis of retail or cash rates for each customer segment and each type of room product to estimate complimentary rates which are consistent with retail rates. Complimentary rates are reviewed at least annually and on an interim basis if there are significant changes in market conditions. Complimentary rooms are treated as occupied rooms in our calculation of hotel occupancy.

Significant Factors Impacting Financial Results

The following summary highlights the significant factors impacting our financial results during the years ended December 31, 2020, 2019 and 2018.

Acquisitions and Transaction Costs

•Caesars – The Merger closed on July 20, 2020. Transaction costs related to our acquisition of Former Caesars totaled $160 million and $80 million for the years ended December 31, 2020 and 2019, respectively.

•Tropicana – Our results of operations for the year ended December 31, 2018 include incremental revenues and expenses attributable to the seven properties we acquired in our acquisition of Tropicana on October 1, 2018. Transaction expenses related to our acquisition of Tropicana totaled $4 million and $18 million for the years ended December 31, 2019 and 2018, respectively.

•Elgin – Our results of operations for the year ended December 31, 2018 include incremental revenues and expenses for the period of August 7, 2018 through December 31, 2018 attributable to Elgin. Transaction expenses related to our acquisition of Elgin totaled $0.2 million and $4 million for the years ended December 31, 2019 and 2018, respectively.

Divestitures and Discontinued Operations

•Divestitures – We closed the sale of Eldorado Shreveport on December 23, 2020 and recorded a gain of approximately $29 million during the year ended December 31, 2020. We closed the sales of Kansas City and Vicksburg on July 1, 2020 and recorded a gain of approximately $8 million during the year ended December 31, 2020. We closed the sales of Presque and Nemacolin on January 11, 2019 and March 8, 2019, respectively, and recorded a total net gain of $22 million, substantially related to the sale of Presque. We closed the sales of Mountaineer, Cape Girardeau and Caruthersville on December 6, 2019 and recorded a net gain of $29 million during the fourth quarter of 2019. The properties that have been sold are collectively referred to as “Divestitures.” In conjunction with the classification of MontBleu and Baton Rouge’s operations as assets held for sale as a result of the announced sale, impairment charges totaling $45 million and $50 million, respectively, were recorded during the year ended December 31, 2020 due to the carrying value exceeding the estimated net sales proceeds. None of the sales listed met requirements for presentation as discontinued operations and the results of operations of the relevant entities are included in income from continuing operations for the periods prior to their respective closing dates.

•Discontinued Operations – As result of the Merger, Former Caesars properties, including Harrah’s Louisiana Downs, Caesars Southern Indiana, Horseshoe Hammond, Harrah’s Reno, Caesars UK group, including Emerald Resort & Casino, and Bally’s Atlantic City, have met held for sale criteria as of the date of the closing of the Merger. The sales of these properties have or are expected to close within one year from the date of the closing of the Merger and the properties are classified as discontinued operations. Additionally, we closed the sale of Harrah’s Reno on September 30, 2020 and Bally’s Atlantic City on November 18, 2020. As a result of the sale of Bally’s Atlantic City, Caesars agreed to reimburse Bally’s Corporation $30 million for capital expenditures required at Bally’s Atlantic City and recorded a liability within Accrued other liabilities and a charge to Discontinued operations, net of income taxes. Our

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commitment will be satisfied by adjusting obligations under certain sportsbook operating agreements between Bally’s Corporation and the Company following our expected acquisition of William Hill.

Financing and Lease Transactions

•New Debt Transactions related to the Merger – In connection with the Merger, we issued new notes, entered into a new credit agreement and assumed certain of Former Caesars indebtedness. In addition, we terminated previously outstanding credit agreements and discharged outstanding notes. As a result of these transactions, described more fully in the Liquidity and Capital Resources section below, we recorded a loss on extinguishment of debt of $132 million during the year ended December 31, 2020, which is recorded within Loss on extinguishment of debt on the Statement of Operations, as well as an additional $388 million of interest expense for the year ended December 31, 2020 compared to 2019. We also recorded a net gain of $16 million on conversions related to the 5% Convertible Notes during the year ended December 31, 2020.

•VICI Leases – Upon consummation of the Merger, CEI assumed obligations of certain real property assets leased from VICI by Former Caesars under various lease agreements. We recorded interest expense of $491 million during the year ended December 31, 2020.

•GLPI Master Lease – We accounted for the GLPI Master Lease as a deferred financing obligation effective October 1, 2018. We recorded interest expense in the amount of $104 million, $99 million and $24 million during the years ended December 31, 2020, 2019 and 2018, respectively, which was in excess of the cash lease payments as we continue to accrete up the liability during the earlier periods of the GLPI Master Lease.

•Tropicana Financing – On September 20, 2018, we issued $600 million in aggregate principal amount of 6.0% senior notes due 2026. The proceeds from the notes were used to fund the Tropicana Acquisition which closed on October 1, 2018. We incurred $10 million of incremental interest expense on these notes for the year ended December 31, 2018.

Other Significant Factors

•COVID-19 Public Health Emergency – In January 2020, an outbreak of a new strain of coronavirus (“COVID-19”) was identified and has since spread throughout much of the world, including the United States. All of our casino properties were temporarily closed for the period from mid-March 2020 through mid-May 2020 due to orders issued by various government agencies and tribal bodies as part of certain precautionary measures intended to help slow the spread of the COVID-19 public health emergency. On May 15, 2020, we began reopening our properties and have resumed certain operations at all of our properties as of December 31, 2020, with the exception of additional temporary closures of Caesars Windsor, Harrah’s Philadelphia, and our properties in Illinois. Subsequently, Harrah’s Philadelphia and our properties in Illinois have reopened. The COVID-19 public health emergency has had a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations for the year ended December 31, 2020. We continued to pay our full-time employees through April 10, 2020, including tips and tokens. Effective April 11, 2020, we furloughed approximately 90% of our employees, implemented salary reductions and committed to continue to provide benefits to our employees during the duration of their respective furlough period. A portion of our workforce has returned to service as the properties have resumed with limited capacities and in compliance with operating restrictions imposed by governmental or tribal orders, directives, and guidelines. Due to the impact of the ongoing COVID-19 public health emergency on our results of operations, we obtained waivers on the financial covenants in our Former Caesars credit facility agreement and the GLPI Master Lease.

The extent of the ongoing and future effects of the COVID-19 public health emergency on our business and the casino resort industry generally is uncertain, but we expect that it will continue to have a significant impact on our business, results of operations and financial condition. The extent and duration of the impact of COVID-19 on our business, results of operations and financial condition will ultimately depend on future developments, including but not limited to, the duration and severity of the outbreak, the efficacy and availability of vaccines, restrictions on operations imposed by governmental authorities, the potential for authorities reimposing stay at home orders or additional restrictions in response to continued developments with the COVID-19 public health emergency, our ability to adapt to evolving operating procedures, the impact on consumer demand and discretionary spending, the length of time it takes for demand to return and our ability to adjust our cost structures for the duration of the outbreak’s effect on our operations.

•Impairment Charges – As a result of declines in recent performance and the expected impact on future cash flows as a result of COVID-19, we recognized impairment charges in our Regional segment related to goodwill and trade names totaling $100 million and $16 million, respectively, during the year ended December 31, 2020. In addition, as a result of the agreements to sell properties in our Regional segment, as well as certain corporate assets, impairment charges

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totaling $99 million were recorded during the year ended December 31, 2020 due to the carrying value exceeding the estimated net sales proceeds.

•Weather and Construction Disruption – Our Regional segment was negatively impacted by severe weather, including flooding, during the first quarter of 2019 compared to the same current year period. Additionally, our Regional segment was negatively impacted by disruption to our casino floor and hotel availability associated with renovation projects at our Black Hawk properties during the construction period from January to June 2019. In late August 2020, our Regional segment was negatively impacted by Hurricane Laura, causing severe damage to Isle of Capri Casino Hotel Lake Charles (“Lake Charles”), which remains closed as the construction of a new land-based casino is in process. We recorded an insurance receivable of $44 million, of which $15 million related to fixed asset impairments and $29 million related to remediation costs and repairs that have been incurred during year ended December 31, 2020.

Results of Operations

The following table highlights the results of our operations:

	Years Ended December 31,
(Dollars in millions)	2020			2019			2018
Net revenues:
Las Vegas	$	751		$	—		$	—
Regional	2,545			2,520			2,055
Managed, International, CIE	163			—			—
Corporate and Other (a)	15			8			1
Total	$	3,474		$	2,528		$	2,056
Net (loss) income	$	(1,758)		$	81		$	95
Adjusted EBITDA (b):
Las Vegas	$	133		$	—		$	—
Regional	671			732			548
Managed, International, CIE	34			—			—
Corporate and Other (a)	(101)			(35)			(32)
Total Segment Adjusted EBITDA	$	737		$	697		$	516
Net (loss) income margin (c)	(50.6)		%	3.2		%	4.6		%
Adjusted EBITDA margin	21.2		%	27.6		%	25.1		%

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(a)Corporate and Other includes revenues related to certain licensing revenue and various revenue sharing agreements. Corporate and Other expenses include corporate overhead costs, which consist of certain expenses, such as: payroll, professional fees, travel expenses and other general and administrative expenses that do not directly relate to or have not otherwise been allocated to a property. Expenses incurred for corporate activities that are directly attributable to a property or are otherwise incurred to support a property are allocated to each property.

(b)See the “Supplemental Unaudited Presentation of Consolidated Adjusted Earnings before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation and Amortization (“Adjusted EBITDA”)” discussion later in this MD&A for a description of Adjusted EBITDA and a reconciliation of net (loss) income to Adjusted EBITDA related margins.

(c)Net (loss) income margin is calculated as net (loss) income divided by net revenues.

Consolidated comparison of the years ended December 31, 2020, 2019 and 2018

Comparisons between 2020 and 2019 are described below. A discussion of changes in our results of operations between year ended December 31, 2019 compared to 2018 has been omitted from this Annual Report on Form 10-K and can be found in “Item 7 - Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations - Year Ended December 31, 2019 Compared to the Year Ended December 31, 2018” of the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2019.

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Net Revenues

Net revenues were as follows:

	Years Ended December 31,						Variance		Percent Change		Variance		Percent Change
(Dollars in millions)	2020		2019		2018		2020 vs 2019				2019 vs 2018
Net revenues:
Casino and pari-mutuel commissions	$	2,337	$	1,808	$	1,553	$	529	29.3	%	$	255	16.4	%
Food and beverage	337		301		247		36		12.0	%	54		21.9	%
Hotel	450		300		184		150		50.0	%	116		63.0	%
Other	350		119		72		231		194.1	%	47		65.3	%
Net Revenues	$	3,474	$	2,528	$	2,056	$	946	37.4	%	$	472	23.0	%

Consolidated revenues increased for the year ended December 31, 2020 as a result of our acquisition of Former Caesars on July 20, 2020. This was offset by a decline in revenues associated with the impact of COVID-19 public health emergency and, to a lesser extent, divestitures of certain properties discussed earlier. All of our casino properties were temporarily closed for the period from mid-March 2020 through mid-May 2020 due to orders issued by various government agencies and tribal bodies as part of certain precautionary measures intended to help slow the spread of the COVID-19 public health emergency. On May 15, 2020, we began reopening our properties and have resumed certain operations at all of our properties as of December 31, 2020, with the exception of additional temporary closures of Caesars Windsor, Harrah’s Philadelphia, and our properties in Illinois. Subsequently, Harrah’s Philadelphia and our properties in Illinois have reopened. Our property in Lake Charles remains closed as a result of damage suffered in Hurricane Laura and will remain closed until construction of a new land-based casino is complete. Due to the impact of the COVID-19 public health emergency, including local and state regulations and the implementation of social distancing and health and safety protocols, our properties are subject to reduced gaming capacity and hotel occupancy, limited operation of food and beverage outlets, live entertainment events and conventions. As a result, gaming revenue represents a larger portion of our total revenues following the reopening of our properties as compared to earlier periods, which we expect to continue until such time as we are able to fully operate our non-gaming amenities following the reduction or elimination of social distancing and safety and health protocols, and other regulatory restrictions limiting capacity and other aspects of our business.

Our diversified portfolio has yielded mixed results as the properties have reopened under the conditions noted above. Net revenues for properties which have historically relied on a local customer base, not dependent on air travel or convention business, showed a smaller decrease as compared to the year ended December 31, 2019 results. These properties’ gaming and hotel revenues have historically been the largest portion of their total revenue. Properties in destination markets such as Las Vegas, Atlantic City, Northern Nevada and New Orleans, which have historically relied on a broader regional and national customer base or convention business have declined significantly as compared to the prior year period. These destination markets were impacted by restrictions on, and an overall decline in, air travel related to COVID-19. These properties have historically relied on a broader mix of revenue sources including convention, entertainment, and food and beverage offerings. As a result of reduced visitation, air travel, state and local restrictions on capacity, and social distancing and safety and health protocols, these sources of revenue have been materially reduced as compared to prior periods.

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Operating Expenses

Operating expenses were as follows:

	Years Ended December 31,						Variance		Percent Change		Variance		Percent Change
(Dollars in millions)	2020		2019		2018		2020 vs 2019				2019 vs 2018
Operating Expenses:
Casino and pari-mutuel commissions	$	1,197	$	905	$	824	$	292	32.3	%	$	81	9.8	%
Food and beverage	261		239		203		22		9.2	%	36		17.7	%
Hotel	170		99		65		71		71.7	%	34		52.3	%
Other	140		46		39