IGT to Shut Down Its Electronic Table Games Division in 2027

IGT is closing its electronic table games (ETG) division in 2027, walking away from automated blackjack, baccarat and roulette terminals to concentrate on its core slot machine and digital business. The supplier confirmed the decision on 15 July 2026, framing it as a deliberate narrowing of priorities under Apollo Global Management, which took the gaming and digital business private in a 6.3 billion dollar deal a year ago. The exit is striking because it comes while the global ETG market is still expanding, and it signals how sharply IGT's new owners are willing to prune product lines that do not fit their plan to become "the operator's supplier."

What did IGT actually announce?

IGT told trade media on 15 July 2026 that it will wind down its electronic table games division during 2027. An IGT spokesman, Phill O'Shaughnessy, said the move comes "as part of our focus on core business priorities and long-term growth objectives," and the company said it would continue supporting existing customers through the transition. In practice that means IGT is stepping back from the terminals that let players wager on automated versions of casino table classics such as blackjack, baccarat and roulette, including the Mesa-branded gaming terminals it had positioned as the modern face of the category.

Key facts at a glance

• IGT will shut its electronic table games division in 2027, confirmed on 15 July 2026.
• Affected products include automated blackjack, baccarat and roulette terminals and the Wheel of Fortune ETG expansion.
• Apollo Global Management completed its 6.3 billion dollar acquisition of IGT's gaming and digital business and Everi on 2 July 2025.
• IGT cut roughly 10 percent of its workforce in March 2026.
• Hector Fernandez, former Aristocrat Gaming chief, became group CEO from the fourth quarter of 2025.
• The global ETG market is forecast to grow by about 1.1 billion dollars at an 8.1 percent compound annual rate over 2024 to 2028, per Technavio.

Why is IGT exiting electronic table games now?

The short answer is focus and capital discipline. Since Apollo took control, IGT has been reshaped around the segments where it holds the strongest position, chiefly slot machines and the wider gaming and digital stack, and away from smaller specialty lines. ETGs occupy valuable casino floor space, yet slots typically generate more revenue per square metre, which makes a sub-scale table games unit a natural candidate for the chopping block when a private equity owner is hunting for margin.

How does the Apollo takeover explain the decision?

Apollo Global Management completed its acquisition of International Game Technology's gaming and digital business, alongside slot and fintech maker Everi, on 2 July 2025 in a transaction valued at 6.3 billion dollars. Everi stockholders received 14.25 dollars per share in cash, and the legacy IGT plc received around 4.05 billion dollars in gross cash proceeds, using the balance to pay down debt and refocus on its lottery arm, which now trades separately as Brightstar Lottery. The combined private company kept the IGT name and is run out of Las Vegas across gaming, digital and fintech units.

What did Apollo say it wanted IGT to become?

The strategic logic was spelled out to Nevada regulators before the deal closed. Daniel Cohen, a partner at Apollo, told the Nevada Gaming Commission in June 2025 that the business had slipped behind rivals Aristocrat and Light and Wonder and needed to be rebuilt into a leaner, more competitive supplier.

"Our goal long term is to become the operator's supplier," Cohen said, according to testimony reported at the time.

Cutting a specialty division that does not move that needle is consistent with the message. When you are trying to be the default supplier of the products operators buy most, a niche terminal line that trails the market leaders is an easy sacrifice.

Who is running IGT through this transition?

Leadership changed hands as the deal completed. Nick Khin served as interim chief executive and moved into leading the gaming business unit, while Hector Fernandez, the former head of Aristocrat Gaming, took over as group CEO from the fourth quarter of 2025. Fernandez arrives from the very competitor Apollo has cited as the benchmark, which makes the pruning of underperforming lines an unsurprising early priority.

How many jobs and products are affected?

IGT has not published a headcount figure specific to the ETG closure, and no separate revenue disclosure for the division has been released. What is on the record is that IGT reduced its overall workforce by roughly 10 percent in March 2026, part of the same cost-focused reset. The 2027 wind-down of electronic table games sits on top of that earlier restructuring rather than replacing it.

What happens to IGT's existing ETG customers?

IGT has said it will keep supporting current electronic table games customers through the transition into and during 2027. For operators running IGT terminals on their floors, that provides a runway rather than an abrupt cut-off, but it also starts a clock: casinos that rely on the platform will need to plan migrations to rival suppliers or to live dealer and slot alternatives before support tapers off.

Is the electronic table games market actually shrinking?

No, and that is what makes IGT's exit notable. Market researcher Technavio projects the global electronic table games market to grow by roughly 1.1 billion dollars between 2024 and 2028, at a compound annual growth rate of about 8.1 percent, with North America accounting for around 38 percent of that expansion. Drivers include multi-game digital tables, rising leisure spend and steady casino adoption. IGT is therefore leaving a category that is still on an upward curve, a reminder that the decision is about IGT's competitive position in ETGs, not about the health of the segment as a whole.

IGT's ETG exit in context

Metric	Detail
Division closing	Electronic table games
Timing	Wind-down during 2027
Owner	Apollo Global Management
Acquisition value	6.3 billion dollars (closed 2 July 2025)
Group CEO	Hector Fernandez (from Q4 2025)
Prior restructuring	About 10 percent workforce cut, March 2026
ETG market trend	Growing at about 8.1 percent CAGR, 2024 to 2028 (Technavio)

How does this fit the wider gaming supplier landscape?

The move fits a broader pattern of consolidation and portfolio pruning across gaming suppliers, much of it driven by private capital. Testing and certification labs are being rolled up, as when Visualize Group acquired eCOGRA, and rivals are chasing scale through acquisitions of their own. IGT's calculation is that concentrating firepower on slots and digital, where it competes head-to-head with Aristocrat and Light and Wonder, offers a better return than spreading resources across a specialty line where it has been an also-ran.

What does the Wheel of Fortune angle tell us?

IGT had previously pushed to extend marquee brands such as Wheel of Fortune into the ETG format, and its team spoke about rebuilding the underlying technology from the ground up. A former IGT executive in the specialty product and ETG area, Luigi Cacciapuoti, described the redevelopment in a 2024 interview by saying the company had "rewrote everything," adding that "every line of code is new." The 2027 closure effectively retires that investment, underscoring how completely priorities have shifted under new ownership.

Why does electronic table games matter to operators?

ETGs let casinos offer table game action with fewer staff and lower minimums, and they are especially popular on high-density Asian floors and in markets where labour costs or space are at a premium. They also appeal to newer players who find live tables intimidating. Losing a major North American supplier from the category narrows operator choice and hands momentum to competitors who remain committed to the format, which is why the decision reverberates beyond IGT's own balance sheet.

What should the industry watch next?

Three things will matter through 2027. First, whether rival ETG suppliers move quickly to capture IGT's installed base and its departing customers. Second, how far Fernandez pushes the same focus logic into other IGT product lines as the Apollo playbook plays out. Third, whether IGT's sharpened concentration on slots and digital actually closes the competitive gap with Aristocrat and Light and Wonder that Apollo set out to fix. The ETG exit is a clear early data point on how aggressively the new IGT intends to reshape itself.

FAQ

When is IGT closing its electronic table games division?

IGT confirmed on 15 July 2026 that it will wind down the division during 2027, while continuing to support existing customers through the transition.

Why is IGT shutting down electronic table games?

IGT said the decision reflects a focus on core business priorities and long-term growth. Under Apollo ownership it is concentrating on slots and digital, where it competes most directly with market leaders.

Who owns IGT now?

Apollo Global Management completed a 6.3 billion dollar acquisition of IGT's gaming and digital business and Everi on 2 July 2025, keeping the IGT name and running the company from Las Vegas.

Is the electronic table games market declining?

No. Technavio forecasts the global ETG market to grow by about 1.1 billion dollars between 2024 and 2028 at roughly 8.1 percent a year, so IGT is exiting a still-expanding category.

What happens to casinos using IGT ETG products?

IGT has committed to supporting existing electronic table games customers through the transition, giving operators time to plan migrations to alternative suppliers before support winds down.

Updated July 2026.