In Massachusetts and the boss for the $960 million MGM Springfield has reportedly asserted that the city-center property is headed in the right direction despite being on track to post disappointing first-year gross gaming revenues.

According to a Monday report from The Boston Globe newspaper, Michael Mathis serves as President and Chief Operating Officer for the Springfield facility and used a recent question-and-answer session to discount criticism surrounding the large venue’s less than stellar financial performance.

Ambitious forecast:

Opened by Las Vegas-headquartered MGM Resorts International in late-August of 2018, MGM Springfield had initially hoped to record first-year gross gaming revenues of around $400 million. But, the newspaper reported that the venue’s 125,000 sq ft casino floor offering some 140 gaming tables and approximately 2,550 slots has so far managed to amass a tally of only $253 million with its July figure coming in at about $20.39 million.

Connecticut competition:

The Boston Globe reported that MGM Springfield has faced stiff competition from the giant Mohegan Sun and Foxwoods Resort Casino, which are tribal-owned facilities located only about 70 miles away in the neighboring state of Connecticut. Mathis purportedly declared that his venue ‘may have underestimated that level of loyalty’ and what it takes to entice the region’s gamblers ‘to give us a shot.’

Mathis reportedly told the newspaper…

“This market has some really strong competitors that have been in the market for twenty-plus years.”

Recent rival:

To make matters worse, the newspaper reported that the Springfield venue is moreover facing new competition in the form of the Encore Boston Harbor facility, which has so for managed to record gross gaming revenues of about $65.36 million including just over $48.57 million last month alone. This $2.6 billion Boston-area venue from Wynn Resorts Limited opened in late-June and purportedly features a larger gaming floor to host a more extensive range of slots and gaming tables.

Positive perspective:

However, Mathis reportedly told The Boston Globe that he ‘feels good about the trajectory’ of MGM Springfield and emphasized that the venue provides employment for some 2,300 people with approximately 40% of these being residents of Springfield. He additionally purportedly proclaimed that the property has helped to attract some six million people to the center of Massachusetts’ third-largest city since opening while also hosting well-known entertainers such as Aerosmith and Stevie Wonder.

Mathis said…

“I mean that’s an incredible feat for a city. That really needs a little bit more attention and needs customers to give it another shot. We’ve proven that MGM Springfield can grow the market. Encore Boston Harbor can grow the market and that we can do unique things in our respective fields.”