By
Mike J. Davies
Editor in Chief at Casinos.US Updated: 10/21/2019
Mike is our Senior Editor and experienced gambling strategist. A former hockey player, he transitioned to the casino industry after finishing his B.A. in English. Blackjack systems, online casino guides, gambling terms, and more – Mike is familiar with all fine points of gambling.
MGM Springfield makes a gamechanger move, inaugurates stadium gaming casino, Photo by Wikimedia Commons
MGM Springfield has been active for a little over a year, and yet the casino giant, which hails from a family of super-successful establishments, has had immense trouble in gaining traction in its home ground.
The 125,000-sq.ft casino, with its 140 gaming tables and 2550 slot machines, opened in August 2018 and is currently managed by the management of the Las Vegas-based MGM International parent organization. The casino, which had a construction budget of over 960 million dollars, is yet to break even. Last year, MGM Springfield made revenues worth $270 million, a massive $230 million short of the projected $500-million earnings. These earnings account for only 25% of the initial investment.
In an effort to regain public patronage and to meet revenue projections, the company has now inaugurated its latest project – a stadium gaming facility.
Stadium gaming casinos offer electronic versions of conventional casino games. These electronic table games, slot games, and poker games follow the same rules as that of physical table-based games. The outcomes of the games are random and not dealer-based.
According to MGM Springfield’s Vice-President of Gaming Operations, Robert Westerfield, the stadium casino has been put-up in a high traffic area, where the casino will be able to generate the highest footfalls. The casino is a 24 terminal facility that will offer 96 different games, which include classic favorites like baccarat, roulette, and blackjack. Gamblers of all profiles will be welcome here.
When questioned about the reason for this new, expensive addition to an already debt-ridden and failing casino, Mike Mathis, President of MGM Springfield, had this to say:
This market has some really strong competitors that have been in the market for 20-plus years. So, I think we under-estimated that level of loyalty and what it would take for those customers to give us a shot.
Mathis, along with other MGM executives, believes that the new stadium gaming facility will be an attraction that younger players will find hard to resist. Research shows that people born after 1981 don’t like using traditional gaming machines like slots and poker tables; instead, they prefer online options. The idea behind this new addition is to tap into non-traditional gaming channels to generate long-term customer patronage from millennial customers. This is one of the reasons why the betting range of the games has been made very affordable – between $5 and $10.
Not everyone is happy or convinced of MGM Springfield’s growth strategies. Many social media users have termed the move a
Hail Mary
endeavor and the last-ditch attempt to help save a floundering casino.
Many millennial customers also have complained that the stadium gaming facility isn’t something they wanted. There are complaints about MGM not offering games with lower minimums.
So far, they don’t get it,
said a regular visitor when asked if he found MGM’s new offering alluring.
Only time will tell if MGM Springfield’s strategy is the right move for the company or not. However, across the country, other casinos, too, are considering following MGM’s footsteps to attract the attention and loyalty of the elusive millennial customers.
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