IR Planned for Osaka Expo Site in 2030, Several Recreational Facilities Proposed

The Yomiuri Shimbun

20:00 JST, October 13, 2025

OSAKA — The Osaka prefectural and city governments are considering a plan to develop the artificial island where the 2025 Osaka-Kansai Expo was held into an international tourism hub including an integrated resort (IR) with a casino to be built there in 2030.

The development on Yumeshima in Konohana Ward, Osaka, will be made in three stages, and the Expo site will be developed in the second and third stages.

The second stage will cover about 50 hectares around the central area of the Expo site. A 200-meter section of the northeastern part of the Grand Ring, a symbol of the Expo 2 kilometers in circumference, will be preserved. The city will create a park in a 3.3-hectare area around the preserved section and entrust the development of the remaining area to the private sector.

Facilities which have been proposed for the site include a racing circuit, a water park, a hotel and an arena. In spring, local governments will publicly seek private companies to be responsible for the development. When the development will be concluded is currently undecided.

The Grand Ring was not originally intended for permanent use and was to be dismantled after the end of the Expo. But in September, the Osaka city and prefectural governments, the Japan Association for the 2025 World Exposition and the national government decided to preserve part of the ring as the popularity of the wooden structure grew after the event opened.

The cost to reform the Grand Ring and maintain it for 10 years is expected to be up to about ¥9 billion. Surplus funds from Expo operations are being considered for this purpose.

Specific plans for the third stage of development have not yet been decided.

An IR housing a casino will be developed at an about 49-hectare site in the first-stage development area north of the Expo venue. Construction began in April, with the facility’s opening planned for around autumn 2030. The initial investment is ¥1.5 trillion.

The IR is expected to attract about 20 million visitors annually.

Hideyuki Araki, chief researcher at Resona Research Institute Co., said, “The Expo site is vast, and synergy with the IR is expected.”

“It is important to not simply end the project with a large-scale development. Strategies with a medium-to-long-term economic outlook in mind are necessary,” Araki said.

Measures against gambling addiction are required when implementing IR projects. The prefecture and city are considering establishing an organization to provide one-stop services covering from consultation to addiction treatment and recovery support.