The second edition of the WSOP Paradise festival wrapped up on Thursday, crowning its Main Event champion and leaving behind some jaw-dropping numbers.
Spanning two weeks, the series awarded 15 gold bracelets and shattered records. While last year’s inaugural festival distributed over $70 million in prize money, this year’s edition more than doubled that figure, awarding $160.5 million in prize money. This is equivalent to an average prize pool of $10.7 million per event—remarkable compared to the WSOP Las Vegas series, which generated $437 million across 99 bracelet events at an average of $4.4 million per event.
Despite having just 15 bracelets, the Bahamas festival achieved nearly one-third of the total prize money seen in Las Vegas during this summer.
So, how much did the WSOP profit from this spectacle? Quite a lot.
The WSOP collected $10.4 million in tournament rake and an additional $2.5 million in admin fees, which were controversially charged at 2% to 3% per bracelet event to cover operational costs. Altogether, the festival generated $13 million in revenue, a portion of which went toward paying staff and dealers.
For context, last year’s Paradise festival brought in $5.4 million, making this year’s financial gains even more striking.
(Note: The fees from only the 15 bracelet events are included. WSOP earned more from side events, satellites, and cash games held during the series.)
WSOP 2024 Las Vegas vs Bahamas
| Las Vegas | Bahamas | |
|---|---|---|
| No. of Bracelets | 99 | 15 |
| Prize Pool Awarded | $437,278,354 | $160,596,175 |
| Avg Prize Pool | $4,416,953 | $10,706,412 |
| Total Entries | 228,413 | 9494 |
| Avg Buy-in | $9,817 | $103,904 |
| Total Fee Collected | $41,920,391 | $13,011,175 |
So, how did the WSOP manage to more than double its revenue despite offering the same number of bracelet events? Well, the difference is clearly in the buy-ins, which were significantly higher this year, making the series even more prestigious.
The High Stakes Factor
This year, nine out of the 15 bracelet events had buy-ins of $10,000 or more, including standout tournaments like the $1 million Triton Invitational and the $100,000 Triton Main Event. Naturally, these marquee events skewed the average buy-in to a much higher level.
For comparison, the average buy-in across events in 2023 was approximately $16,000. This year, the average buy-in skyrocketed to over $100,000. While such high buy-ins inevitably impacted player turnout, the series still recorded approximately 9,494 combined entries — down from 17,267 last year but still impressive given the circumstances.
Even when excluding the two Triton events, the average buy-in remained at nearly $25,000, which is about 50% higher than last year. This makes the overall turnout of close to 10,000 participants particularly noteworthy, especially considering the intense competition from rival events like the WPT World Championship with its $5 million freeroll and EPT Prague taking place in Europe simultaneously.
WSOP Paradise: 2023 vs 2024
| 2023 | 2024 | |
|---|---|---|
| Prize Pool Awarded (Minus Admin Fee) | $70,019,540 | $160,596,175 |
| Combined Entrants | 17,267 | 9494 |
| Avg Buy-in | $16,453 | $103,904 |
| Main Event Prize Pool | $15,050,000 | $50,000,000 |
| Overlay | $188,000 | $1,017,500 |
| Total Fee Collected | $5,470,570 | $13,011,175 |
Massive Fees from Major Events
The $50 million guaranteed Super Main Event was the festival’s crown jewel. Never before had any live operator set such an ambitious guarantee. Although the event narrowly missed its target, attracting 1,978 entries and resulting in a $550,000 overlay, it still became the second-largest live tournament of the year, surpassed only by its own — the iconic WSOP Main Event in Las Vegas.
Despite the overlay, the Super Main Event was a major financial success for WSOP officials, who earned approximately $3 million in rake from this single tournament.
The two Triton events also did very well. The first, a $1 million Invitational Event, paired a professional player with an invited amateur partner, with each contributing $500,000. This unique structure attracted 37 pairs, with 22 opting to rebuy, culminating in 96 total entries and a $48 million prize pool. It was won by PokerStars ambassador “Papo MC“ for a $12 million payday. WSOP officials pocketed $4.8 million from this event alone.
The second Triton event, the $100,000 Main Event, also had a successful outing. Drawing 182 entries, it amassed a prize pool exceeding $18 million. From this single event, the operator collected just over $1 million in rake.
Another standout event was the WSOP Mini Main Event, which featured a $5 million guarantee. With 2,031 entries, the event narrowly surpassed its guarantee, generating over $650,000 in rake for the operator.
The festival also included two online bracelet events hosted on GGPoker. The GGMasters Online Championship, featuring a $2.5 million guarantee and a $2,750 buy-in, fell short of its guarantee after attracting 813 entries, resulting in a $467,500 overlay. Meanwhile, the Mystery Millions online bracelet event, boasting a $5 million guarantee drew 2,185 entries across all Day 1 flights to create a $5.4 million prize pool.
From these two online bracelet events, GGPoker generated over $900,000 in revenue, which included an additional 2% administrative fee charged on the prize pool.
The Future of Paradise
To sum up, WSOP and its new owners, GGPoker, are likely satisfied with the overall results of this year’s Paradise festival. Hosting a series in the Bahamas—a location often criticized for its high costs and logistical challenges—was undoubtedly a bold choice. Few operators opt to run festivals here due to past complaints about expenses, yet WSOP and GGPoker managed to deliver a series that generated the largest prize pool ever in the Caribbean.
In addition to the high costs and logistical challenges, WSOP and GGPoker imposed extra administrative and loyalty fees on top of the standard rake, a move that has not been well received by players.
That said, this achievement comes against the backdrop of fierce competition from the WPT’s World Championship in Las Vegas, which could have easily drawn players away.
GGPoker’s contribution through online qualifiers and satellites likely helped boost attendance and entries, mitigating some of the potential challenges. Even so, the reported $13 million in revenue stems exclusively from the 15 bracelet events, one of which was a freeroll with no buy-in. Beyond these headline events, the schedule was packed with side tournaments, satellites, and cash games, all of which contributed considerable additional revenue to the festival.
With another successful stop in the Bahamas under their belt, a third edition of the WSOP Paradise festival next year seems almost certain. The big question now is whether WSOP and GGPoker will aim for another massive Main Event of this scale or choose to scale it down.
Meanwhile, WSOP has announced the dates for the 56th annual World Series of Poker, set to return to the Las Vegas Strip for the fourth consecutive year. WSOP 2025 is scheduled to run its Nevada poker festival from May 27 to July 16, 2025.
