Sheldon Gary Adelson (August 4, 1933 – January 11, 2021) was an American businessman,[2] investor, political donor, and philanthropist.[3][4][5] He was the founder, chairman and chief executive officer of Las Vegas Sands Corporation, which owns the Marina Bay Sands in Singapore, and the parent company of Venetian Macao Limited, which operated The Venetian Las Vegas and the Sands Expo and Convention Center before selling the properties in early 2022.[6] He owned the Israeli daily newspaper Israel Hayom, the Israeli weekly newspaper Makor Rishon, and the American daily newspaper the Las Vegas Review-Journal.[7][8]

Adelson created the Adelson Foundation in 2007, a private charity focusing on healthcare and support of Israel and the Jewish people. He was a major contributor to Republican Party candidates[9][10] and was often dubbed a “kingmaker” due to the size and frequency of his donations.[11][12] He and his wife Miriam Adelson were Donald Trump’s largest donors, providing the largest donation to Trump’s 2016 campaign, his presidential inauguration, his defense fund against the Mueller investigation into Russian interference, and the 2020 campaign.[13][14][15][16][17][18] He was also a major backer of Israel’s prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu.[19]

In 2020, Forbes listed his net worth as US$29.8 billion.[20]

He died in 2021