Brian Hansberry is group president of Delaware North’s gaming division.
Delaware North is a global leader in hospitality and entertainment, and is also one of the most innovative gaming and racing operators in the country, owning and operating successful regional destination casinos and gaming venues in New York, Illinois, Florida, Arizona, West Virginia, Arkansas and Ohio, as well as in Australia., and consulting on a new casino resort being developed in North Carolina.
Hansberry joined Delaware North in 2013, bringing 30 years of senior-level leadership in the gaming industry, including president and chief executive officer positions. In 2009, he was recognized as one of the “Top 25 Executives to Watch” by Global Gaming Business, and his experience includes operations, strategic planning and capital development.
Under Hansberry, Delaware North in 2019 acquired a major gaming destination in Darwin, Australia, and renamed it Mindil Beach Casino Resort. In 2014 Delaware North developed and opened a $38 million expansion of Southland Casino Racing in West Memphis, Ark., and is developing a $250 million expansion of Southland to include a new gaming complex and hotel to open in 2022. In 2018 the company acquired Mardi Gras Casino & Resort near Charleston, W.V., featuring a full casino and hotel. The company is serving as a consultant to the Catawba Nation in developing a $263 million casino resort in Kings Mountain, N.C., and opened a temporary facility with 1,000 gaming machines in 2021.
In 2016 Delaware North acquired Ruby Seven Studios, a leading developer of social casino gaming applications, and GEM (Gaming & Entertainment Management – Illinois LLC), the third largest video gaming terminal (VGT) route operator in Illinois. The company also renovated a former movie theater and reopened it in 2017 as Orange City Racing & Card Club, a state-of-the-art poker room and racing simulcasting venue near Orlando, Fla. Also in 2017, Delaware North opened Jake’s 58 Casino Hotel on Long Island, the most successful casino in New York state in revenue per gaming machine before selling it to Suffolk Regional OTB in 2021. In 2013, the company developed and opened the $165 million Miami Valley Gaming, a joint venture in Ohio with Churchill Downs Inc.
Prior to joining Delaware North, Hansberry spent three years at Agua Caliente Casino Resort Spa in Rancho Mirage, Calif., initially serving as general manager before accepting a promotion to chief operating officer after being credited with turning around the flagship property.
From 2007 to 2009, Hansberry served as president and chief executive officer of Seneca Gaming Corp., overseeing Western New York casinos in Niagara Falls, Buffalo and Salamanca. Among his accomplishments there, Hansberry oversaw significant annual revenue growth and led the three-year development of a $350 million casino in Salamanca.
Hansberry began his career as a dealer at Resorts International’s casino in Atlantic City, N.J., where he developed his career by experiencing operations in marketing, player development and administration before being promoted to operations assistant casino manager. He has also served as vice president of casino operations at Players Island Casino in Lake Charles, La.; director of operations at Isle of Capri Casino in Lake Charles; and casino manager at the Sands Hotel and Casino in Atlantic City.
A graduate of Rutgers University in New Jersey, Hansberry has held gaming licenses in New York, California, New Jersey and Louisiana. A supporter of the Boys and Girls Club of Niagara Falls and the United Way, he has also served on the boards of directors of the Buffalo Niagara Partnership, Seneca Diabetes Foundation, and the Rancho Mirage Chamber of Commerce.