Former Arena Football League commissioner to head MGM Resorts’ sports-betting expansion

Zach Gibson / AP

Arena Football League Commissioner Scott Butera speaks during a news conference in Washington, Thursday, July 14, 2016, before unveiling the Washington Arena Football League’s team name, logo, and color.

Scott Butera, the former Foxwoods Resort Casino chief executive who became commissioner of the Arena Football League, has joined MGM Resorts International as president of interactive gaming, which includes sports betting, the Las Vegas-based operator announced Monday.

"Skill-based gaming is expanding exponentially and his experience will help us to dominate the field," Corey Sanders, MGM Resorts' chief operating officer, said in a statement announcing Butera's hiring. "As an industry leader in sports betting and cutting-edge interactive gaming offerings, MGM Resorts is well-positioned to bring our decades of experience and well-earned reputation to new markets throughout the country. Scott will play a key role as we continue to expand nationwide."

MGM Resorts, which expects to open a Springfield, Mass., resort casino in August, operates sports books at casinos it owns in Las Vegas and is seeking to expand such operations in other states in the wake of last month's U.S. Supreme Court repeal of a federal ban on sports wagering.

Butera was replaced as AFL commissioner in the spring, prior to the start of the four-team league's current season.

Butera left Foxwoods in 2014, after four years at the helm of the Mashantucket Pequot-owned casino. While at Foxwoods, he negotiated a massive debt-restructuring for the tribe. He previously had led restructuring efforts at Las Vegas-based Tropicana Entertainment and at Trump Hotels & Casino Resorts. Before that, he spent 15 years as an investment banker.

Butera holds a bachelor's degree from Hartford's Trinity College and a master of business administration degree from New York University.

Gaming

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