Dive Brief:
- MGM Resorts International saw revenue declines in Las Vegas in the second quarter of 2025 despite posting overall 2% year-over-year consolidated net revenue growth for the same period, driven by its regional operations and MGM China, according to an earnings report published Wednesday.
- The operator reported a 4% year-over-year decrease in Sin City revenues “due primarily to the impact from the room remodel and a decline in table games hold at MGM Grand Las Vegas,” according to the report. MGM also posted a 9% year-over-year decline in adjusted EBITDA in Las Vegas for the quarter.
- While Las Vegas experienced a “choppy period” in Q2, MGM CEO Bill Hornbuckle said during a Wednesday earnings call, convention bookings for the fourth quarter and beyond show promise. Additionally, sports tourism is slated to drive growth in the market, he noted.
Dive Insight:
MGM’s Q2 Las Vegas results come as international visitation “has been an issue, not only for Las Vegas, but a lot of destinations,” Hornbuckle said during the call. He specifically noted a decline in Canadian tourists to Sin City, echoing a trend Caesars Entertainment CEO Tom Reeg pointed out during a separate earnings call earlier in the week.
Interrupted international tourism, the result of recent U.S. government actions, is expected to impact hotel performance nationwide through the second half of 2025, Tourism Economics projected last month.
Despite the Q2 declines, Las Vegas “remains fundamentally solid,” according to Hornbuckle.
Las Vegas group and convention bookings, specifically, are “pacing up double digits thanks to [a] robust 2026 convention calendar,” Hornbuckle said, adding that Las Vegas hosts “many of the world's largest events and conventions in a city that is not readily, if ever, duplicatable.”
MGM CFO Jonathan Halkyard said that the operator has “seen positive bookings in three of the last four weeks” with “solid bookings of groups and conventions that are in place for later in the year.”
“We're optimistic about restoring a growth trajectory in Las Vegas during the fourth quarter that will carry on into 2026,” Halkyard said.
Sports tourism will be a driver of future growth in Las Vegas, Hornbuckle noted, pointing to Bally’s $1.8 billion MLB stadium for the Oakland Athletics, which broke ground last month at the former site of the Tropicana resort. The stadium is “expected to bring 400,000 new visitors annually to Las Vegas,” Hornbuckle said.
Additionally, MGM’s partnership with Marriott International is on track to book 900,000 room nights in 2025 as the tie-up “continues to drive performance with a higher-quality customer,” Hornbuckle shared.
In the second quarter, MGM saw room nights through the partnership increase 31% year over year, according to Hornbuckle. And the pace has accelerated into July, with MGM having its best Marriott bookings week ever earlier this month, he said.
