The company currently operates 13 hotel-casino properties in Las Vegas and 32 worldwide. The sale is one of several involving MGM Resorts in recent months on Las Vegas Boulevard. The transaction is expected to close in the second half of 2022, following regulatory approvals. Under the terms of the agreement, MGM Resorts will keep The Mirage name and brand, licensing it to Hard Rock royalty-free for up to three years while it finalizes its plans to rebrand the property. Hard Rock International bought the naming rights in May 2020 with plans to eventually open a Las Vegas Strip property. That property was purchased in 2018 and renovated and rebranded by Virgin Hotels Las Vegas. He noted that his company had no previous involvement with the former Hard Rock Hotel & Casino that operated from 1995 to 2020 east of the Las Vegas Strip. Jonathan Halkyard, MGM Resorts treasurer and chief financial officer, said that as the real estate owner of The Mirage, VICI Properties will be expected to reach a new lease agreement with Hard Rock.Īllen said Hard Rock International will welcome The Mirage’s 3,500 employees to its roster.

He added: “The monetization of our entire real property portfolio, together with the addition of Cit圜enter and our agreement to acquire The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas, will position the company with a fortress balance sheet, premier portfolio and significant financial resources to pursue our strategic objectives.' “This announcement marks the culmination of a series of transformational transactions for MGM Resorts during the last several years,” said Paul Salem, Chairman of the MGM Resorts board of directors. The underlying Mirage real estate is now owned by MGM Growth Properties, which is being bought by New York-based VICI Properties in a $17.2 billion deal expected to close next year. When the Connecticut-based Mohegan Tribe opened a casino at the new Virgin Hotels Las Vegas earlier this year, it became the first tribe to operate a Las Vegas casino.Īnd gaming regulators are expected this week to issue a decision on the San Manuel Band of Mission Indians' bid to acquire the off-strip hotel-casino, The Palms. US Defense Secretary Austin makes unannounced visit to UkraineĪs traditional gambling industry players shift their business focus to sports betting and expand in markets in Asia and the Middle East, the sale reflects the growing presence of tribal-run enterprises on the Strip.

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