Caesar's Palace group eyes Dome

Roman centurions could be returning to the banks of the Thames after nearly 2,000 years with the news that the owners of Caesar's Palace are looking at the Millennium Dome as a future casino.

The giant Las Vegas group Park Place Entertainment, which owns Caesar's Palace, is understood to be anxious to gain a foothold in what it believes would be a lucrative British market by turning the Dome into a casino - if Parliament decides to relax the country's gambling laws.

It would mean doormen dressed as legionnaires and togaclad waitresses, along with an army of slotmachines and gladiatorial clashes in the shape of international boxing.

Deborah Munch, a vice president with Park Place, said that the company was "very excited" at the prospect of opening a casino in Britain, but said she would not comment further until the Commons had voted on reforms to the 1968 Gaming Act.

The US-owned Anschutz Entertainment Group, which heads a rival consortium expected to bid for a 999-year lease on the 160-acre site in Greenwich, has said it would consider a casino as part of its redevelopment plans.

Lord Falconer of Thoroton, the minister for the Dome, has already visited Los Angeles on a fact-finding tour.