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Date: 3/21/2023
SPRINGFIELD — BetMGM, along with a multitude of other online sportsbook applications, debuted in Massachusetts on March 10. For MGM Springfield, BetMGM marks an expansion of their on-location sportsbook that opened on Jan. 31 after years of legislative deliberations.
In a press release, BetMGM CEO Adam Greenblatt celebrated the debut of BetMGM in Massachusetts. He considered its arrival an exciting inclusion for MGM Springfield’s operation.
“The debut of sports betting in Massachusetts has delivered an incredible amount of excitement and activity to our retail sportsbook at MGM Springfield … We’re proud to expand our best-in-class wagering experience statewide during one of sports’ biggest months of action,” said Greenblatt.
MGM Springfield Vice President of Casino Operations Robert Westerfield also expressed his enthusiasm for BetMGM during a March 10 press junket. Westerfield considers BetMGM a “user-friendly” service that provides an endless array of sports betting options.
“We have the most user-friendly application. We have all the bets and access to every bet you could possibly imagine, from the length of the national anthem to the coin toss,” said Westerfield.
Westerfield championed MGM as “the king of sports books” for their services across the nation. He shared optimism for BetMGM’s expansion in Western Massachusetts, considering the area “a great market” for their services.
“We’re all over the country. We handle action from small [bets] to as high as you can possibly imagine. We’ve been doing this for years and years, so this is just an expansion upon that in Wester Mass. … We think it’s going to be a great market,” said Westerfield.
BetMGM is being integrated within MGM Springfield’s current sportsbook operations. The casino features an information table within their sports betting entertainment area, which includes a lounge with stadium seating and a 45-foot-long viewing wall comprised of TV screens. Several BetMGM marketing promos are also posted throughout the casino walls.
Another important facet of MGM Springfield’s sportsbooks is gaming education. The casino hosts the GameSense program onsite while also providing GameSense information through the BetMGM application. Both outlets promote responsible gambling through various tools and information.
“They’ve been a great partner since day one, [the sportsbooks] will only expand their services,” said Westerfield.
In the month and a half since MGM Springfield debuted it’s on location sportsbook, Westerfield shared its been a boost in the casino’s activity.
“It’s been an unbelievable boost to the energy in the building … The synergy has been fantastic, the staff has been great, and you can feel the energy through the whole building. You can feel the buzz,” said Westerfield.
He also noted that the casino’s various amenities have benefited from the sportsbook.
“They are very happy … There are more people really experiencing the property,” said Westerfield.
Casino amenities are continuing to return to normal operations. MGM Springfield announced the expansion of several onsite dinning spaces during a Feb. 16 press conference, including Tap Sports Bar, the Italian restaurant Costa and the coffee shop Roasted Bean. Other casino facets, like the Tap Sports bowling alley and Topgolf Swing Suite, also opened for additional hours.
The infusion of new activity in MGM Springfield follows a Jan. 20 visit from MGM Resorts International CEO William Hornbuckle. He, Mayor Domenic Sarno, Casino Oversight Committee Chair Michael Fenton and MGM Springfield President Chris Kelley hosted a discussion and press conference regarding the casino’s performance since opening in August 2018.
Hornbuckle admitted the casino has not performed to MGM International’s standards. On property retail outlets Indian Motorcycle and Kringle Candle Company are being reimagined as the casino looks for more conducive fits. Additionally, MGM Springfield shifted their hiring expectations from their outlook of 3,000 employees to 2,000.
“Our original valuation of this market simply was, off full stop … We thought there would be more business here than ultimately materialized,” said Hornbuckle.
Currently, the casino hosts an employee base of around 1,500 people. They are actively hiring through job fair events.
Indian Motorcycle also formally reopened on March 16 with some new features, including the infusion of Springfield Thunderbirds merchandise.
During February, the first full month of active sportsbooks in Massachusetts, MGM Springfield lagged behind other casinos’ sportsbook revenue figures. According to the Massachusetts Gaming Commission’s monthly report, Encore Boston Harbor and Plainridge Park Casino earned $857,602 and $890,555 in taxable sports betting revenue, while MGM Springfield grossed $262,066. The casino earned approximately $12,152 of profits in its sportsbook launch on Jan. 31.
The debut of sportsbooks did allow MGM Springfield to experience a boost in total profits. The casino earned $23.3 million in February compared to $22.8 million in January. February marked the casino’s highest grossing month since October 2022.
Despite a few hurdles, Hornbuckle and Sarno remain optimistic about the casino’s future. Sarno expressed that MGM Springfield is “starting to get its mojo back” in the aftermath of the coronavirus pandemic. He noted that several nearby restaurants and businesses have benefited from the spin-off effects of MGM Springfield’s presence in the community.
Now with the arrival of BetMGM, Westerfield shared the casino is “super excited” for its new growth opportunity. He noted that the timing of having both onsite and phone application sportsbooks operational is ideal for the casino with the start of the NCCA March Madness tournaments.
“We’ve waited for this day for so long, we are thrilled that its here … The timing is great. It worked out well the way we got [the on-location sportsbook] a week before the Super Bowl so we could get our legs under us and a week before the March Madness tournament [for BetMGM’s debut],” said Westerfield.