Casino operator Las Vegas Sands has withdrawn its name from the race to win one of Japan’s three highly prized integrated resort licenses.

On Tuesday, Sands stunned the gaming world by issuing a statement indicating that the company “will discontinue its pursuit of integrated resort (IR) development in Japan.” Sand boss Sheldon Adelson (pictured) said it was time for his company “to focus our energy on other opportunities.”

Sands was one of the earliest proponents of a Japanese opportunity, famously vowing to spend “whatever it takes” on a property that would draw the world’s gamblers. But that initial vow to spend $10b led to an endless game of one-upmanship by rivals, prompting Sands president Rob Goldstein to openly muse late last year about whether pursuing an IR license was still “prudent.”

Adelson said Tuesday that his “fondness for the Japanese culture” goes back 30 years to his days operating COMDEX shows in the country, and while his “positive feelings for Japan are undiminished … the framework around the development of an IR has made our goals there unreachable.”