MGM Resorts International has been around since 1987, establishing itself as a premier home and entertainment company over the decades. It boasts iconic venues on The Strip in Las Vegas, Nevada, and a hefty presence online in the US and beyond.
Calling the shots for the historic brand these days is Bill Hornbuckle as the CEO and president of MGM Resorts International Adam Greenblatt as BetMGM’s CEO. Both have experienced success in recent months with grand plans for the company’s land-based and online pursuits.
Developing a Strong Online Audience
With the repeal of PASPA in 2018, the onus was on existing US brands – especially those entrenched in Nevada – to quickly offer a modern and expansive online betting platform for the new, ever-growing market. For MGM, that came by way of a partnership with Entain Plc to form BetMGM. Already, the platform has seen a lot of success.
Each year, the Super Bowl represents the crown jewel of the US betting season. In 2025, some $1.4 billion was wagered on the Super Bowl, which BetMGM saw its fair share of. As relayed in this yahoo!finance piece, in speaking with Asking for a Trend, Greenblatt said that they aimed to learn from and build on their experiences of lower customer retention rates in 2024.
In the previous Super Bowl, the online platform saw many players come for the big game but not really stick around afterwards. So, they doubled down on “value over volume,” which worked. They saw a 14 percent increase year-on-year in active accounts. It’s around this time that they pivoted to focussing on premium players, too.
Adding to the success story of the platform, the gaming side landed the American Gambling Awards Online Casino of the Year prize in October, showing the brand’s range and reach. Of course, sports betting is most prevalent in the US, which is why they have gone with offering various BetMGM bonuses to try and convert as wide a portion of that market as possible.
There are codes for betting $10 to get $150 and a first bet offer of up to $1,500. From there, BetMGM Rewards and MGM Rewards earned through participation on the platform aim to enhance the value of each bet further. Promotions have been key to BetMGM’s success, and now the sportsbook’s expanding its women’s sports range.
Expanding the On-Land Footprint
The other side of the two-pronged strategy of enhancing the MGM brand is, of course, furthering its footprint via world-class hotel resorts and casinos. Potentially helping this effort moving forward might be that Hornbuckle has landed the National Chair of the U.S. Travel Association’s board of directors, as USTravel reports.
Clearly a respected and experienced leader in the field, Hornbuckle’s focus extends far beyond the US for MGM. Most recently, he’s been discussing Thailand’s impending opening to hotel casino complexes. Naturally, he intends to enter the market, but the thinking is that it won’t be until Q1 or Q2 of 2026 that the four locations become available.
As well as Thailand, Brazil is getting more and more of the CEO’s attention. From middle March, Hornbuckle will reportedly be pushing further efforts to become established in the market over the following six weeks. As he stated in an interview with HospitalityInvestor, both the digital platform and the brick-and-mortar spaces are driving organic growth for MGM.
Whether it’s in the form of online gambling or an extensive resort experience, MGM looks to be in strong and driven hands that’re not only finding success now, but have a clear path to further triumphs down the line.
Also Read: Why Ethereum Is the Preferred Cryptocurrency for Online Gambling in 2025
