Ex-Tropicana boss Tony Rodio moves to Affinity Gaming

ATLANTIC CITY >> Tony Rodio, who helped push the Tropicana casino to the No. 2 spot in Atlantic City’s casino market, has been named CEO of Affinity Gaming, a Las Vegas company that owns 11 casinos.

Rodio had been president of Tropicana Entertainment, but that company was acquired earlier this year by Eldorado Resorts, which already had its own CEO.

The appointment was made last Monday.

“We are committed to Affinity Gaming becoming a leader in the local casino market, and Tony’s career accomplishments make him uniquely qualified to lead the company in its next phase of growth and development,” said James Zenni, chairman of Affinity’s Board of Directors and Chief Executive Officer of Z Capital Partners, which owns Affinity. “Tony is one of the top executives in the gaming industry and I’m confident that he is the right person to drive Affinity’s continued growth and enhanced commitment to the player experience.”

The company owns five casinos in Nevada; three in Colorado; two in Missouri and one in Iowa.

Rodio ran the Atlantic City Hilton and Resorts casinos in Atlantic City before his stint at Tropicana Entertainment began in 2011 as the company’s president and CEO.

He inherited a company recently out of bankruptcy and still struggling to reconnect with customers after previous owners allowed the business to deteriorate to the point that they were stripped of their casino license.

Working for new owner Carl Icahn, Rodio oversaw major capital projects including $200 million worth of renovations. At the end of last year, Tropicana had risen to become the No. 2 casino in the Atlantic City market in terms of gambling revenue among what were then seven casinos; two more re-opened this year.

Rodio had also worked for Hollywood Casino and Harrah’s.

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