5 Questions: George Goldhoff

5 Questions with George Goldhoff President & CEO of Hard Rock Atlantic City and President of Casino Association of New Jersey 

When Hard Rock Atlantic City needed a new president, it chose George Goldhoff, who had been running the Hard Rock Cincinnati property. Goldhoff previously worked for MGM Resorts and PURE Canadian Gaming, and even had a hand in F&B, managing restaurants at the Plaza and Rainbow Room in New York City.  

He was recently appointed president of the Casino Association of New Jersey at a critical time for the Boardwalk casinos, faced with heated competition from casinos in New York City. In April, Goldhoff spoke with GGB Editor at Large Roger Gros at the East Coast Gaming Congress at the Hard Rock. To hear and view the full GGB Podcast, where Goldhoff talks about the Hard Rock, the proposed smoking ban in New Jersey, responsible gaming and prediction markets, visit GGBMagazine.com.  

GGB: Let’s talk about your role with the Casino Association and cooperation with the city. In the past, it hasn’t always been great. Hard Rock Chairman Jim Allen has criticized the city in the past. How’s it been the last few years with Marty Small as mayor? 

George Goldhoff: I can only speak personally, from my viewpoint. It’s been fantastic. He and I get along really well. We don’t see eye to eye on everything, but we have a really cordial, collegial relationship. And I really like Marty as a person. He’s done a lot of good things for the city. But we need more and want more.  

You now have a seat on the Casino Reinvestment Development Authority. What have you learned about that agency? 

It’s really interesting. On the CRDA website, there’s a master plan for Atlantic City commissioned by Governor (Chris) Christie in 2011 and adopted in 2012. It’s very comprehensive at 190 pages. It breaks out Atlantic City into a variety of districts, including the entertainment district, and lists what should get done. The top two items of importance are (elimination of) blight and the perception of clean and safe. My view is that you could update the report today and not change those two things.  

What should Atlantic City do to improve? 

Goldhoff: The city has enormous potential and incredible upside. I’d like to see building codes enforced more strictly, and beautification in our parks and all around town. I’d like to see blight reduced. And I’d like to have a plan. It would help to have a safe, walkable entertainment district. Let’s start from Pacific Avenue towards the beach, then we can build out. 

Let’s talk about New York City. One casino is operating, Resorts World New York City. The other two, including a Hard Rock, won’t be open until 2030 at the earliest. What does Atlantic City need to do to prepare? 

Goldhoff: Well, look, my heart and my responsibilities are here in Atlantic City. We realize that in 2026, there’s going to be an immediate impact from Resorts World. I also think back and study history. Between 2007 and 2014, gaming was legalized in Delaware, Maryland, and—most importantly as it affects Atlantic City—Pennsylvania. In 2007, gross gaming revenues—for bricks-and-mortar; there was no digital back then—peaked out at about $5.2 billion. By 2014, the market bottomed out at $2.4 billion. It went down by about 45 percent. And five casinos went out of business. 

What can you can take away from that time? 

Goldhoff: One lesson we learned was that it’s impossible to compete with convenience. People will drive miles down the road to play their slot machine. But when it comes to an experience, many will choose Atlantic City. We have the Boardwalk. We have the beach. We have a number of casinos in one place. We have world-class entertainment, the best restaurants, the best hotel rooms. And quite frankly, the tax rates in New York are very elevated compared to New Jersey.

We can offer free play. We can offer our players a hotel room. We can get them tickets to some of the best shows in the world. We can get them on a great golf course. So it’s a different experience. But knowing full well that this will have an immediate and large impact on the casinos in Atlantic City, we have to prepare.