The Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Act wiped out India's real-money gaming sector overnight. As thousands lose their livelihoods, the UAE is hiring casino managers and building the Middle East's first integrated gaming resort.
Harsh Jain built Dream11 into India's most valuable gaming company. MS Dhoni endorsed it. Rohit Sharma appeared in its commercials. The platform sponsored the Indian cricket team's jersey for ₹358 crore.
Across the Gulf, a different story is unfolding. The UAE is building its first casino resorts and hiring thousands.
Then, in August 2025, Parliament passed the Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Act. Within days, Jain told CNBC that 95 percent of revenues and 100 percent of profits had vanished overnight.
Dream11 walked away from its BCCI sponsorship. Team India played the Asia Cup without a title sponsor for the first time in years. The printed jerseys with Dream11's logo sat unused.
The numbers tell part of the story. Before PROGA, India's real-money gaming industry employed over 200,000 people across 400 startups. It generated roughly $2.3 billion in taxes and contributed ₹23,000 crore to the economy annually.
After PROGA, the industry recorded asset write-downs exceeding $840 million. An estimated 7,000 workers lost their jobs within months. Head Digital Works, operator of A23 Rummy, saw its workforce collapse from 606 employees to 178. Foreign investor Clairvest wrote off its entire ₹760 crore investment.
Dream11 retained its 800 employees but stopped hiring. Jain estimated that ₹10,000 crore in annual spending on advertising, consulting, and legal services would disappear from the broader economy.
"The skill-based RMG vertical not only attracted investments but also created jobs, generated substantial tax revenues, and nurtured entrepreneurs," said Ranjana Adhikari, a technology and gaming law partner at Shardul Amarchand Mangaldas.
The government defended PROGA as necessary protection against addiction, financial fraud, and social harm. India's online gambling regulation debate had raged for years with no resolution. Federal IT Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw claimed iGaming had robbed 450 million Indians of more than ₹20,000 crore, leading to depression and suicides.
But critics warned that banning legal platforms would simply push players toward unregulated offshore operators. A survey cited by the Economic Times confirmed their fears. Before the ban, only 3.4 percent of users spent more than two hours on offshore platforms. After? That figure jumped to 44 percent.
Players reported the offshore sites were easy to use for deposits and withdrawals. No ID verification. No GST. No consumer protections.
"Bans rarely eliminate demand," Adhikari noted. "They simply displace it towards illegal or unregulated platforms."
The industry's fate now rests with the Supreme Court. On January 21, 2026, a three-judge bench will hear constitutional challenges to PROGA. Companies like A23 have called the law "a product of state paternalism" and argue it violates fundamental rights.
The government's position is firm. In its affidavit, the Centre described an unregulated ecosystem that posed risks to public order, financial integrity, and vulnerable users. Lok Sabha member Bansuri Swaraj called the law a necessary measure that "unmasked the wolf for what it is."
Until the court rules, India's multi-billion-dollar gaming sector remains frozen.
While India shuts down its gaming industry, the United Arab Emirates is building one from scratch.
Wynn Al Marjan Island, a $3.9 billion integrated resort in Ras Al Khaimah, is actively recruiting casino managers, pit supervisors, blackjack dealers, and poker table operators. First time the GCC has seen job postings like these.
The resort expects to create over 7,500 jobs before its March 2027 opening. Primary recruitment kicks off in September 2026. Positions span from room attendants and bartenders to finance executives and nightlife planners. Staff will represent up to 95 countries.
The UAE established the General Commercial Gaming Regulatory Authority, chaired by former MGM Resorts CEO Jim Murren, to oversee licensing and operations. Wynn received the country's first commercial gaming operator license in October 2024.
Bloomberg Intelligence projects $6.6 billion in potential gaming revenue for the UAE market. The resort itself anticipates generating up to $5 billion in annual revenue.
Construction is advancing at one floor per week. Not a typo. The development secured the largest hospitality financing deal in UAE history: a $2.4 billion construction loan backed by Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank, Deutsche Bank, First Abu Dhabi Bank, and Emirates NBD.
Look at the numbers side by side. India passed a law that wiped out 200,000 jobs overnight. The UAE? It created a regulatory framework now generating thousands of new positions.
One country pushed players to offshore platforms with no oversight. The other built a licensing system with compliance requirements, responsible gaming mandates, and actual consumer protections.
Indian gaming startups wrote down $840 million in assets while the UAE pulled in $3.9 billion in resort investment. More developments are likely to follow.
Wynn has already acquired additional land in Ras Al Khaimah, signalling future expansion. Other international operators are watching closely.
The January 21 Supreme Court hearing will determine whether India's gaming industry has any future. But whatever the court decides, the UAE will keep building. The jobs India destroyed are being created 3,000 kilometers away.
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