The intersection of the gambling and sports circles has recently seen another major news story. Tilman Fertitta—a billionaire holding the Golden Nugget casino chain and the largest individual shareholder of Wynn Resorts, has purchased the WNBA's Connecticut Sun team for $300 million. This price sets a record for the sale of a WNBA team. The PASA official website notes that the identity of the seller is also interesting—the Mohegan Tribe of Connecticut, who became the first Native American tribe to own a U.S. professional sports team when they bought the team in 2003, and were the first independent owners in the WNBA. Now that the deal is complete, the Sun team will move to Houston after this season and revert to their old name, the "Houston Comets."
$300 million deal sets WNBA record
This transaction is notable not only for the amount of money involved but also because it involves two gambling "heavyweights." Fertitta is the owner of the Houston Rockets and a rumored key figure in the acquisition talks with Caesars Entertainment; the Mohegan Tribe operates one of the most successful tribal casinos in the U.S., Mohegan Sun. Both sides are casino veterans, yet they met over a women's basketball league transaction.
When the Mohegan Tribe bought the Sun team, the WNBA was still under direct NBA ownership. They set a precedent as "independent owners," and now they have sold at a record-breaking price, marking a significant historical moment. However, for Connecticut fans, the situation is somewhat bittersweet—the team played 23 seasons in Connecticut, reached the finals four times but never won a championship, becoming the oldest team in WNBA history without a title. Last year, the Connecticut government even proposed an investment plan to acquire a minority stake in the team, but ultimately could not keep it.
The "retreat" of the Mohegan Tribe and the "advance" of Fertitta
In recent years, the Mohegan Tribe has faced some challenges in their gambling expansion. Last year, they partnered with the Soloviev Group to develop a $11 billion comprehensive project, Freedom Plaza, near the United Nations headquarters in Manhattan to compete for a downstate New York casino license, but it was rejected during the community approval stage. Before that, they invested $1.6 billion in building the INSPIRE Integrated Resort near Incheon Airport, which was taken back by Bain Capital in February last year due to loan default. They also had a casino operation contract at the Virgin Hotel in Las Vegas, which ends in 2024. So, selling the Sun team, although it brought in a large sum of cash, was somewhat of a "retrenchment."
On the other hand, Fertitta's operations continue to grow. Besides buying the team, he has recently been rumored to be in talks with Caesars Entertainment about an acquisition. This rumor itself has caused Caesars' stock to fluctuate significantly for several weeks, with neither side denying the reports. Additionally, he is the largest individual shareholder of Wynn Resorts and holds a plot on the Las Vegas Strip that has been approved for a casino license but has not yet been developed. Interestingly, Fertitta is currently serving as the U.S. Ambassador to Italy, and he previously promised the U.S. Office of Government Ethics that he would avoid any conflicts of interest during his term, "either by recusing himself from specific dealings or by selling off relevant assets."
The return of the Houston Comets, future challenges ahead
For Houston, this transaction represents a "nostalgic return." The Comets were one of the founding teams of the WNBA and won the league's first four championships from 1997-2000, before disbanding in 2008. Now, Fertitta has brought them back, at least in name and memory. However, Texas has not yet green-lighted sports gambling, and Fertitta's Golden Nugget casino business, along with the Rockets and Comets, are all part of the same commercial landscape, raising questions about future coordination.
The current president of the Sun team, Jen Rizzotti—a player who won two WNBA championships with the Comets—feels somewhat reluctant about the team leaving Connecticut. She said, "The Mohegan Tribe took over when no one else wanted it, and this should not be forgotten. No matter how people view this transaction now, they genuinely supported this team for over twenty years."
Now, the Sun team will complete their final season in Connecticut before heading south to Houston. Meanwhile, the rumors of Caesars' acquisition, the handling of Wynn shares, and the development of that vacant lot remain uncertain. PASA's official website will continue to monitor this gambling tycoon's moves between sports and casinos.
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This article is from "PASA-Global iGaming Leader," a gambling industry news channel:https://t.me/pasa_news
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