INSPIRE Entertainment Resort — 인스파이어 엔터테인먼트 리조트 — will open a 70-table poker room alongside new VIP and nightlife facilities at its integrated resort near Incheon International Airport.
The new venue, YY Poker, will make its debut by hosting WPT Seoul — WPT 서울 — from 30 October to 9 November 2026.
The 11-day festival will include 46 events, with buy-ins ranging from KRW300,000 to KRW8 million. Its main tournament, the WPT Seoul Championship Event, will run from 5 to 9 November with a KRW1.75 million buy-in and a guaranteed prize pool of KRW1 billion. The final table is expected to be livestreamed internationally.
Poker anchors a wider entertainment expansion
YY Poker will feature 70 tables and a dedicated livestreaming studio. The new development will also include Daia, described as an exclusive junket or VIP room, and Ultra Lounge, a premium nightclub and bar.
WPT Seoul will be the first major event held in the space and will form part of its official opening. Tournament participants will also receive access to nightly entertainment at Ultra Lounge and special accommodation rates at INSPIRE.
The combination suggests that INSPIRE is not treating poker as an isolated casino product. The resort is packaging tournament play with accommodation, nightlife and premium hospitality in an attempt to increase the wider value generated by each visitor.
A tool for attracting foreign customers
INSPIRE operates Korea’s largest foreigner-only casino — 외국인 전용 카지노. Its ability to grow gaming revenue therefore depends heavily on attracting visitors from outside South Korea.
The resort is located close to Incheon International Airport — 인천국제공항 and includes 1,275 hotel rooms, a 15,000-seat arena, dining, retail and entertainment facilities. INSPIRE has also recently increased its focus on partnerships with inbound travel agencies and international tourism businesses.
A recognised international poker series gives the property a fixed event around which players can plan multi-day trips. It also offers exposure beyond Korea through livestreaming and the World Poker Tour’s international audience.
The size of the new room indicates that INSPIRE expects poker to become more than a one-off promotion. The key test will be whether the resort can maintain a regular tournament calendar and convert event attendance into hotel stays, nightlife spending and repeat visits.
WPT Seoul will provide the first indication of whether that strategy can establish INSPIRE as a meaningful stop on Asia’s live-poker circuit.
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Author: Adrià Mas Rodríguez