Empire Resorts Set to Join Russell 3000 Index

Empire Resorts, Inc., (NASDAQ: NYNY) today announced it is set to join the broad-market Russell 3000® Index on June 25, 2010, as part of an annual reconstitution of Russell’s U.S. and global equity indexes according to Russell's preliminary list of additions published June 11, 2010 at www.russell.com. These changes are expected to go into effect after the close of trading on Friday, June 25, 2010 and remain in place for one year.

Empire Resorts expects that inclusion in the Russell 3000® would also result in inclusion in the Russell 2000, which is a subset of the Russell 3000® Index and includes approximately 2,000 of the smaller companies based on their market capitalization. All Russell indexes are sub-indexes of the Global Index. Initial inclusion in the Russell indexes will continue to raise the awareness of Empire Resorts to a wider range of institutions and investors.

Russell indexes are widely used by investment managers and institutional investors for index funds and as benchmarks for both passive and active investment strategies. An industry-leading $3.9 trillion in assets are benchmarked to them. Stocks that are added to Russell indexes are often purchased by index funds. Russell's investment tools originated from Russell's multi-manager investment business in the early 1980s when the company saw the need for a more objective, market-driven set of benchmarks in order to evaluate outside investment managers.

More information on the reconstitution is available at: http://www.russell.com/indexes/membership/Reconstitution/Reconstitution_changes.aspx

About Russell Investments

Russell Investments provides strategic advice, world-class implementation, state-of-the-art performance benchmarks and a range of institutional-quality investment products. Russell has $179 billion in assets under management as of March 31, 2010, and serves individual, institutional and advisor clients in more than 40 countries. Founded in 1936, Russell is a subsidiary of The Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Company.

About Empire Resorts

Empire Resorts owns and operates the Monticello Casino & Raceway, a harness racing track and casino located in Monticello, New York, and 90 miles from midtown Manhattan. For additional information, please visit www.empireresorts.com.

Statements in this press release regarding the Company's business that are not historical facts are "forward-looking statements" that may involve material risks and uncertainties. The Company wishes to caution readers not to place undue reliance on such forward-looking statements, which statements are made pursuant to the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1994, and as such, speak only as of the date made. For a full discussion of risks and uncertainties, which could cause actual results to differ from those contained in the forward-looking statements, see "Risk Factors" in the Company's Annual Report or Form 10-K for the most recently ended fiscal year, as well as the Form 10-Q for the most recently ended fiscal quarter.