Mohegan Gaming & Entertainment Names Cantone President

Mohegan Gaming & Entertainment promoted Tom Cantone to president of its sports and entertainment division.

It’s a new position, and the move took effect Thursday. Cantone was the senior vice president of the casino gaming empire before the bump.

“This grows my role as we expand internationally,” Cantone said. “It’s been in the works for some time. We’ve really been focusing on the non-domestic side of things as of late, and the title change will help me guide MGE to the next level. While we’re really happy with how fantastic business is in the U.S., we see a tremendous amount of opportunity overseas.”

Cantone will continue to work from the Mohegan Sun corporate offices in Uncasville, Conn., also home to the company’s highly successful flagship live entertainment venue, Mohegan Sun Arena. The 10,000-capacity venue was the best-attended U.S. arena in its category in 2019 midyear rankings based on Pollstar data.

“My team and I will be quite busy both domestically and internationally, and that’s one of the reasons the company wanted to change my title,” Cantone said. “In the world market, position is important as we build relationships. This will give me better access and give us better credibility.”

MGE owns, develops and manages eight U.S. properties in Connecticut, Washington, Pennsylvania, Louisiana and New Jersey and owns the WNBA’s Connecticut Sun and the New England Black Wolves of the National Lacrosse League. MGE will also operate gaming when the Hard Rock Hotel in Las Vegas reopens as Virgin Hotels Las Vegas in 2020.

The company kicked off its international presence in June when it took over operations at Fallsview Casino Resort and Casino Niagara, both in Niagara Falls, Ontario. A new 5,000-seat venue at the Fallsview property will open early in the first quarter of 2020.

MGE is also part of a multibillion-dollar integrated resort in South Korea that will feature a 15,000-seat arena. The Inspire Super Arena will be near Incheon International Airport, a short flight from China. Cantone expects to break ground in South Korea in the next few months. Live Nation is a partner.

The company is also in play in Greece, where it is potentially part of a massive casino project. “We’re one of the finalists and hopefully we’ll get some good news soon,” he said.

Cantone credits his team with making him look good.

“My team does an awesome job and we are one of the biggest producers of entertainment in the industry,” he said. “We’ve probably done over 1,500 shows this year, and you can triple that number for the shows that don’t happen.”

Cantone sees no limit to how big MGE can grow.

“Entertainment is part of our brand DNA,” Cantone said. “We’re ready to export what we do best to the world stage. In the next five years you won’t recognize MGE. We’re going to become a major global entertainment company.”