During a quarterly earnings call Wednesday in which much of the discussion revolved around rumors that MGM Resorts was in line to purchase the U.K. gaming giant Entain (MGM’s partner in the BetMGM iCasino and sports betting venture), MGM Resorts CEO Bill Hornbuckle was asked if he could quantify how the company’s Michigan casino business was doing.
“Michigan … is the best example where we have market-leading brick and mortar and market-leading digital,” Hornbuckle said, according to a transcript of the call published by The Motley Fool. “The digital business now has surpassed the brick-and-mortar by about 25 percent-ish. They’re both doing well over $300 million GGR (gross gaming revenue).”
Hornbuckle went on to remark that BetMGM’s iCasino business was actually “approaching $400 million in GGR.” Specific to the company’s Detroit casino, he said “there was some concern early in the middle part of last year” because “COVID lasted longer there in terms of its policies than anywhere else.”
‘The best laboratory’
Hornbuckle said things have been looking up in the last three months, however, with potential for increased synergy between retail and online offerings.
“Our numbers have not only stabilized, but continued to grow in Detroit,” Hornbuckle said. “So while it’s obvious that there’s a subset amount of play going on in digital, [there’s a] chance to connect that with brick-and-mortar and ultimately reward and recognize. And simple things like bonusing or jackpots that I leave — that I’m playing at home, I can come pick up in the brick-and-mortar where I left off as a player and have a contiguous experience.”
Hornbuckle closed his comments by calling Michigan “a great opportunity” and “the best laboratory” for innovation in the casino space, adding, “Michigan gives us confidence that, going forward, we can replicate some of that in any of these other states.”
Photo: Denise Truscello/Getty Images
