In September 2012 Sheldon Adelson proposed a major investment in Europe after he and his team had been in discussions with government officials in Madrid and Barcelona.
Finally, Las Vegas Sands Corp. announced Madrid had been chosen as the destination for the gambling resort project dubbed "EuroVegas".
[2] It was expected to take about ten years to build[3] Eventually in 2025 or 2026 Eurovegas would have occupied approximately 2000 acres (7.5 square kilometers), and when completed, would have comprised: The developer planned to begin the first phase in 2016 but reports that the Government of Spain was reluctant to grant the various legal exemptions necessary.
In effect, the company wanted a legal tax haven in which the Europe wide ban on smoking in public places would not apply, and its management code would replace national employment regulations.
[4] These issues relate to easements of various European Directives, and may be a smokescreen to obscure funding difficulties[5] Eurovegas would have been the third resort macrocomplex to open outside of the United States after Macau and Singapore.