MGM Resorts CEO Calls Las Vegas A ‘Sports Lovers Town’

By ALAN SNEL

LVSportsBiz.com

 

MGM Resorts International CEO Jim Murren said Las Vegas has transformed into a “sports lovers town” and he expects the U.S. Supreme Court to legalize sports betting later this year.

 

Murren made his bullish sports comments during a fourth quarter and full year 2017 earnings conference call Tuesday morning.

 

Indeed, MGM Resorts has invested big-time in sports with the purchase and re-branding of the WNBA Las Vegas Aces, which will start play at a refurbished Mandalay Bay Events Center in 2Q this year, and the title sponsorship of the NBA Summer League, which will have all 30 league teams come to Las Vegas and UNLV in July.

 

MGM Resorts also looks forward to a Gennady Golovkin-Canelo Alvarez rematch in 2Q at T-Mobile Arena, which it owns with Anschutz Entertainment Group and Vegas Golden Knights owner Bill Foley.

 

MGM Resorts’ properties such as Mandalay Bay, Luxor, Excalibur also plan to take advantage of the Raiders’ new stadium across Interstate 15 from those casino-hotels, analysts on the call were told. The $1.9 billion stadium project is expected to be completed in mid-2020. The Raiders are receiving $750 million from Nevada to build the domed, 65,000-seat venue.

 

MGM Resorts officials even touted the Vegas Golden Knights’ home playoff games at T-Mobile Arena, which will help revenues and have a “big impact” at neighboring MGM hotel-casinos. They mentioned the team was a 200-1 bet to win the Stanley Cup at the start of the NHL 2017-18 season and now it’s 9-2 or even 4-1 depending on sportbooks in town. (It should be noted that Golden Knights coach Gerard “One Game At A Time” Gallant does not even discuss the playoffs, publicly anyway.)

 

Murren told analysts on the call that MGM Resorts plan to “take advantage” of what he expects will be a Supreme Court decision to legalize sports gambling. The Supreme Court is expected to decide in a few months on a state of New Jersey sports betting case that could potentially overturn a sports gambling ban in 46 states.

 

MGM Resorts has casinos in the states of New Jersey, Mississippi and Michigan that could enact sports gambling enabling legislation to open the door for sports betting in those states.  And Murren’s “take advantage” comment appeared to indicate that MGM Resorts will be poised for legalized sports betting at its domestic casino properties outside Nevada.

 

MGM Resorts International has also been aggressive in trying to recruit more sports programming for the $375 million T-Mobile Arena, which sits between its New York-New York and Monte Carlo. For example, there was college hockey games at the arena in January and don’t be surprised if MGM Resorts tries to bring the Frozen Four college hockey championship to the arena.

 

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