Wealth shifts west to east. Entertainment power follows.
My call: by 2040 the Gulf, not the Strip, is the world's entertainment capital, Riyadh, Abu Dhabi, and Dubai on sovereign capital and speed.
Vegas has peaked: 42 million visitors and $80 billion in economic impact a year, and both stopped growing, flat is the new decline.
Franchises are economic power: Saudi's PIF led the record $55 billion buyout of EA, closed August 2026, the largest leveraged buyout in history, a country bought the games.
Predictions are not always reality: NEOM's $1.5 trillion The Line, planned for 9 million people over 170 km, got cut to a fraction.
Vegas. 42 million visitors, $80 billion in economic impact, occupancy above 80%. "Vegas is dead" is clickbait. But Vegas is done growing, and in an exponential world, flat is the new decline.
The rule. I said it live on stage in Riyadh: wealth is physically moving from West to East. 142,000 millionaires relocated in 2025, the UAE the number 1 destination, Saudi Arabia up 8x. Compare the 2 doors: Europe punishes leavers with exit taxes, Norway, Germany, the Netherlands billing you on gains you never sold. The UAE lures them in with golden visas, zero income tax, and the safest streets on Earth, Abu Dhabi ranked number 1 year after year. 1 continent builds a wall. 1 region builds a welcome mat. Capital walks toward the mat. Not vibes. Numbers.
The loop. The wealthy arrive for safety and tax. The concerts, the fights, the franchises follow them. Then the spectacle pulls in the next million. Vegas ran that loop for 70 years. The Gulf runs it now, with sovereign money and no legacy to protect.
The 2040 power map. Vegas plateaus. Riyadh and Abu Dhabi scale. Dubai globalizes. Singapore stabilizes. Los Angeles hybridizes. Macau, Seoul, Bangkok challenge. Franchises are economic power: Riyadh Season buys the UFC, Qiddiya rises from sand, and Saudi's PIF led the record $55 billion buyout of EA, the largest leveraged buyout in history, closed in August 2026. A country just bought the games.
The reality check. Predictions are not always reality: NEOM's $1.5 trillion The Line got cut to a fraction. Execution decides. Place your bets on the Middle East and Asia.
Early call
