CLAIMS TO FAME
- Won Japan’s only IR license in April 2023
- Was on the opening team of The Mirage alongside Steve Wynn
US casino giant MGM Resorts pulled a surprise in October when it withdrew suddenly from the race to win one of three full commercial casino licenses in downstate New York. For a company that has been aggressively seeking expansion opportunities globally, it naturally caught many off-guard, but then it could be argued MGM has bigger fish to fry.
The company and its consortium partners are the sole licensees to develop an IR in Japan – a sprawling development on Osaka’s Yumeshima Island that latest estimates price at a cool US$10 billion to complete. MGM is expecting to chip in around US$3 billion of that.
Thailand, where the company has also expressed interest in investing via its Macau subsidiary MGM China, looks to be off the table for now, but the UAE remains very much on the radar. MGM is hedging its bets in the UAE. In Dubai, it is developing a luxury resort called The Island featuring various MGM-linked hotel brands such as MGM Grand, Bellagio and Aria, with Bill Hornbuckle having revealed there will be a 150,000 square foot space set aside for future gaming purposes should the emirate eventually issue one or more casino licenses.
However, the company has also applied for a license in Abu Dhabi – considered the more likely emirate to welcome casino gaming in the short-term.
Of course, for all of this expansion talk, it is in Macau – where MGM has long operated two integrated resorts – that the company is really rolling right now.
Once considered the smallest of Macau’s six concessionaires by both scale and revenue, MGM China has rocketed up to third place post-COVID, in part thanks to being allocated an additional 198 gaming tables under the current 10-year concessions but also having become a market leader when it comes to quality and innovation.
It is no secret that MGM was the first in Macau to introduce smart gaming tables, giving it a healthy head start on the competition after the government politely suggested it would like all six to roll out the technology across their gaming floors.
It has also led the way in the competitive marketing stakes, introducing everything from free snacks on its gaming floors – the government viewed that idea a little less favorably – to mini Labubu dolls for those willing to spend their rewards points in such a manner. Increased reinvestment back into its players has attracted some criticism from rivals, but Hornbuckle has rightly pointed to the company’s 30% margins as evidence that nothing has been too out of line.
It is true that MGM can never be accused of falling asleep at the wheel, given their dominant position in Las Vegas and many moving parts globally. That should be enough to keep Hornbuckle, who recently inked a contract extension to end-2028, busy until then.
For the full list of 2025 Asian Gaming Power 50 winners, click here.
