May 19, 2021 | Boxing, Breaking News, Entertainment, General News, Sports
Fans Excited to Return for Major Sports & Shows
UNCASVILLE, CT (May 19, 2021) – Mohegan Sun Arena, consistently ranked 
among the top entertainment venues worldwide according to Billboard Magazine, Pollstar and others, was excited this past weeknd to welcome back fans with return of the WNBA’s Connecticut Sun, who are currently 2-0 and led by DeWanna Bonner and Jonquel Jones. Mohegan Sun Arena’s first public concert since winter 2020 is also scheduled, when Soft-Rock duo, Air Supply, plays on Sunday, July 18th. More exciting upcoming concerts planned in Mohegan Sun Arena include Lady A on July 29th, Dustin Lynch on August 5th, Straight No Chaser on August 8th, Deftones on August 21st, Tom Segura on August 27th, Toby Keith on September 3rd and back-to-back Sebastian Maniscalco dates on October 1st and 2nd. Major 2022 Mohegan Sun Arena concerts announced recently also include The Weeknd (February 6, 2022), Brad Paisley (May 27, 2022) and Justin Bieber (June 18, 2022). Exciting MMA action returns on Friday, June 11th as well, with Lima (32-8) vs. Amasov (25-0)
With guidance and collaborative work with the Mohegan Tribal Health Department, Mohegan Sun Arena reopens with limited capacities in place during May, June and most of July. This will include private shows, CT Sun games, Bellator MMA and the return of the first public concert on July 18th. Mohegan Sun Arena plans to return to full capacity when Lady A, whose national tour starts at Mohegan Sun, performs on Thursday, July 29th. Health & safety measures will be in effect at Mohegan Sun Arena, including some limitations on food and beverage service. Tickets will also be managed electronically, with ease-of-use on smart phones included. For more information, visit mohegansun.com/arena-policies
“While much of the past year Mohegan Sun Arena was one of the few venues producing live events, it’s with great excitement we can now bring back live fans to enjoy both sports and entertainment at our world-class venue.” –said Jeff Hamilton, President & General Manager of Mohegan Sun. “As the summer approaches, Mohegan Sun will also be announcing additional events and festivities to take place across our property, including some of our most popular outdoor events.”
Tickets can be purchased through Ticketmaster and an up-to-date Mohegan Sun Arena calendar for 2021 is available via mohegansun.com/arena-calendar, with highlights below:
- Air Supply | Sunday, July 18th | Tickets on-sale now
- Lady A |Thursday, July 29th | Tickets on-sale May 21st
- Dustin Lynch |Thursday, August 5th| Tickets on-sale May 21st
- Frankie Valli | Friday, August 6th |Tickets on-sale now
- An Evening with Straight No Chaser | Sunday, August 8th | Tickets on-sale now
- Jeff Dunham | Friday, August 20th | Tickets on-sale now
- Deftones | Saturday, August 21st | Tickets on-sale now
- Tom Segura| Friday, August 27th | Tickets on-sale May 21st
- Big & Rich | Wednesday, September 1st | Tickets on-sale now
- Toby Keith | Friday, September 3rd | Tickets on-sale now
- Dan + Shay | Saturday, September 11th | Tickets on-sale now
- CMN Presents Marc Anthony | Saturday, September 18th | Tickets on-sale now
- Sebastian Maniscalco | Friday, October 1st & Saturday October 2nd | Tickets on-sale now
- Harry Styles | Saturday, October 23rd | Tickets on-sale now
- The Doobie Brothers | Thursday, October 28th | Tickets on-sale now
- The Monkees Farewell Tour | Friday, October 29th | Tickets on-sale now
- Old Dominion | Saturday, October 30th | Tickets on-sale now
- Dave Matthews Band | Tuesday, November 9th & Wednesday, November 10th | Tickets on-sale now
- Chris Young | Sunday, December 5th | Tickets on-sale now
“We have been preparing for this day for a long time and we believe that being open this past year operationally makes us more than ready to safely deliver the memorable entertainment experiences that we have become known for.” Said Tom Cantone, President of Sports & Entertainment for Mohegan Gaming & Entertainment (MGE). “July 18th will certainly be a special night when our first public concert returns with Air Supply taking the stage.”
For the first half of the 2021 WNBA season, leading up to the Olympic break, the Connecticut Sun will safely host their full and partial plan season ticket holders. Connecticut Sun games will also still require masks, to align with current WNBA guidelines. For more information, visit Connecticutsun.com or call 1.877.SUN.TIXX. Details on individual ticket sales will come at a later date. Upcoming CT Sun home games include May 19th vs. The Indiana Fever, May 28th vs. The Washington Mystics, June 1st vs. Las Vegas Aces, June 5th vs. the New York Liberty, June 13th vs. the Seattle Storm, June 22nd vs. The Dallas Wings and June 27th vs. The Chicago Sky.
Mohegan Sun Arena was named “Innovator of the Year” by Celebrity Access in part due to the transformation that Mohegan Sun Arena underwent during much of the pandemic, becoming a broadcast residency center for sports including MMA, Boxing and College Basketball. ViacomCBS and Mohegan Sun partnered to host the most championship MMA (Bellator) and Boxing fights ever held at a venue in one year, seen by millions around the world. This partnership is also currently the longest running residency in the US. In late 2020, Mohegan Sun Arena was also home to “Bubbleville,” where the Basketball Hall of Fame and Gazelle Group safely completed 26 Division 1 NCAA Men’s and Women’s games in the span of 10 days.
Just before Mohegan Sun’s temporary closure related to the pandemic last year, Bellator MMA was the last public sporting event held in Mohegan Sun Arena. On Friday, June 11th, they are now planned to be the first to welcome back fans, in limited fashion, when Douglas Lima defends his title against the undefeated and #1 ranked Yaroslav Amosov. Tickets start at $60.00 and will be available through Ticketmaster.com on Friday, May 21st, with a special presale starting on Thursday, May 20th from 10:00am – 10:00pm EST.
This fight will also be on SHOWTIME. Bellator MMA will also feature a main event between heavyweight Tim Johnson (15-6) and heavyweight Valentin Moldavsky (10-1) live from Mohegan Sun Arena, with limited fans, on Friday, June 25th. More details on these events are available via bellator.com/articles
A Hall of Fame Tip-Off NCAA Tournament is also being planned at Mohegan Sun Arena for the start of College Basketball later this year. North Carolina, Villanova, Purdue and Tennessee are expected headliners.
Additionally, Mohegan Sun’s award-winning Wolf Den venue inside Casino of the Earth is back. Limited capacity shows returned this month, and upcoming shows include local favorites Crazy on You – A Tribute to Heart, The 60s Explosion Show and Mullett, to name a few.
This past weekend, Mohegan Sun also successfully hosted the nationally televised Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame Enshrinement Weekend, celebrating the class of 2020. The likes of Michael Jordan, Magic Johnson, Julius “Dr. J” Erving and other legends were on hand Saturday, May 15th, for the Enshrinement Ceremony inside Mohegan Sun Arena, which hosted 2,000 socially distanced fans. Kobe Bryant was posthumously inducted into to the Basketball Hall of Fame, along with an incredible class that included Tim Duncan, Kevin Garnett, Tamika Catchings and more.
ABOUT MOHEGAN SUN ARENA
Mohegan Sun Arena is now ranked consistently among the top venues in the world according to Billboard Magazine, Pollstar and Venues Now and is also consistently ranked top 15 in the world for “All Size Venues.” The award–winning venue was named “#1 Social Media Venue in the World” in 2016 and is a seven–time Academy of Country Music Awards (ACM) national award–winner for “Arena of the Year,” with the most recent recognition coming in 2019. In 2020, Mohegan Sun Arena remained one of the top venues in the world according to year-end reports by both Pollstar and Venues Now. For more information and updates on Mohegan Sun Arena, call 1.888.226.7711 or visit Mohegan Sun.
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Apr 20, 2021 | Breaking News, General News, Sports
Former UConn Women’s Basketball Star and Current Assistant Coach of the USA Women’s Olympic Basketball Team to Lead Mohegan Tribe owned WNBA Franchise
Mohegan Sun is excited to announce today that Jennifer Rizzotti has been 
named President of the Connecticut Sun (CT Sun). In this role, Rizzotti will be responsible for the overall business operations and marketing strategies of the Mohegan Tribe owned WNBA franchise that plays its home games in Mohegan Sun Arena.
“I am so honored to rejoin the WNBA family in this leadership position with the Connecticut Sun,” said Rizzotti. “This league employs the very best women’s basketball players in the world. But more importantly, the WNBA is an inclusive and diverse community of women that inspire, lead and in their own words, “provide a voice for the voiceless.” I am proud to have won two championships as a player in the WNBA and will work tirelessly to help bring a championship to the Sun franchise.”
“When you open the official website of the Mohegan Tribe, the first thing you read is Honor the Past. Building for the future,” continued Rizzotti. “I believe the immediate future of the WNBA has never been more exciting. The level of talent, growing support around the sports world, and the league’s commitment to be a keystone for cultural change in these tempestuous times, makes this upcoming season one of the most important in its already rich history.”
Jennifer Rizzotti had a storied career for the UConn Huskies from 1992 – 1996, where she helped lead a 1995 team to a 35-0 season that ended in a Division 1 NCAA Women’s Basketball Championship. She finished her college career with 637 assists and nearly 350 steals, while averaging just over 11 points per game. After playing eight seasons of professional basketball following college, which included two championship seasons with the Houston Comets (1999 & 2000), Rizzotti embarked on a coaching career that led her to the University of Hartford (UHart) where she spent 17 seasons. During her tenure with UHart, Rizzotti became America East Conference “Coach of the Year” in 2006, 2007 and 2010. Rizzotti has also been an integral part of USA Women’s Basketball, and she currently serves as an Assistant Coach for both the Women’s USA Olympic team and the USA AmeriCup Team. In 2011, she was named USA Basketball “Coach of the Year.”
“Jen Rizzotti brings instant credibility and is a powerhouse within the women’s basketball community. She has deep roots here in Connecticut and we could not be more thrilled to have her joining our team,” said Connecticut Sun Board of Governors Representative and Recording Secretary for the Mohegan Tribal Council, Kathy Regan-Pyne. “Her passion, talent and expertise, along with her shared values and philosophies, make her a natural fit within our organization. We look forward to the team’s continued success and path forward under her leadership and alongside our incredible staff, coaches and players.”
“The Connecticut Sun has had so many great seasons, and incredible athletes, coaches and leaders throughout their impactful history here at Mohegan Sun,” said Jeff Hamilton, President & General Manager of Mohegan Sun. “Mohegan Sun is honored to have Jennifer Rizzotti joining our executive team, and we’re incredibly excited about the future of the Connecticut Sun under her vision.”
A press conference on this special announcement will be scheduled for members of the media on Tuesday, April 27th, where Rizzotti will be joined by Mohegan Sun, Mohegan Tribe and CT Sun leadership. More details are to come on this event.
Rizzotti was also head coach of the George Washington Women’s basketball team for five years, that began with a 20-10 season in 2016-17 and a share of the A-10 regular season title. A trip to the NCAA Tournament would come in 2018 as well, after coaching George Washington to an A-10 Tournament title. Rizzotti was inducted into the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame in 2013, joining fellow UConn legends, Coach Geno Auriemma (2006 inductee) and Rebecca Lobo (a 2010 inductee).
“I’d be remiss if I didn’t recognize the contributions that Amber Cox made to this franchise over the past five years,” said Rizzotti. “She and head coach & GM, Curt Miller, have made the Connecticut Sun one of the most successful teams in the WNBA. I look forward to using this foundation and the overall culture of the Mohegan Tribe and Mohegan Sun to attract players, fans, and sponsors to be a part of our bright future.”
The Connecticut Sun recently announced their schedule for the upcoming 2021 season, which starts on the road against the Atlanta Dream on Friday, May 14th. The Sun, led by DeWanna Bonner, Jonquel Jones and Jasmine Thomas, have their first home game of the season on Sunday, May 16th, which marks their first return to Mohegan Sun Arena since Game 4 of the WNBA finals on October 8, 2019.
ABOUT MOHEGAN SUN
Owned by Mohegan Gaming & Entertainment, Mohegan Sun is one of the largest, most spectacular entertainment, gaming, dining and shopping destinations in the United States. Situated on 185 acres along the Thames River in scenic southeastern Connecticut, Mohegan Sun is home to two unique casinos, 1,600 deluxe hotel rooms, two world-class spas, a golf course, over 80 shops, restaurants and bars as well as three award-winning entertainment venues including a 10,000-seat Arena. Mohegan Sun is within easy access of New York, Boston, Hartford and Providence and located 15 minutes from the museums, antique shops and waterfront of Mystic Country. More information is available by calling 1.888.226.7711 or visiting mohegansun.com. Connect with us on Facebook, follow us on Twitter and Instagram @mohegansun, view us on YouTube and find us on Snapchat at username MoheganSun.
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Apr 9, 2021 | Breaking News, Community Relations, Entertainment, General News, Special Events, Travel & Leisure
Connecticut’s Leading Integrated Entertainment Resort to Host Milestone Miss America 2021 Competition and Other Exciting Events
UNCASVILLE, CT (April 9, 2021) – The stage is set for an unforgettable 2021 at Mohegan Sun! Mohegan Gaming & Entertainment’s (MGE) flagship property today announced an exciting evolution of its partnership with the Miss America Organization (MAO) to continue hosting one of the nation’s most anticipated competitions. For the next three years, Miss America events and finals will take place at the award-winning Mohegan Sun Arena. This historic relationship is a testament to Mohegan Sun’s consistent innovation and industry-leading health and safety practices that have inspired confidence among its distinguished partners and the public. The 100th anniversary Miss America competition will be broadcast live in December 2021.
“Following the success of the Miss America 2020 competition at Mohegan Sun, we knew we had created something very special here in Connecticut and we’re thrilled to be able to host Miss America events and competitions for the next three years at our destination,” said Jeff Hamilton, President and General Manager of Mohegan Sun. “Miss America will now become one of Mohegan Sun’s largest annual events in terms of size, scope and reach, allowing us to continue to deliver world-class, unique experiences to all those who step through our doors. We share many values with MAO, such as community support and empowerment, and we are excited and honored to add the like-minded organization to our incredible roster of renowned partners.”
2021 marks a historic year for MAO as the nationally recognized nonprofit celebrates its 100th anniversary this fall. The milestone competition will continue to highlight a diverse group of young students and professionals who are advancing the message of female strength, independence, and empowerment through their efforts in the areas of scholarship, talent and social impact. MAO looks forward to returning to the big stage and providing a national platform for each talented candidate to share their voice with viewers around the country.
“For 100 years Miss America has been an icon, a champion for social causes, and one of the leading providers of scholarships to women in the country,” said Shantel Krebs, Miss America Organization President & CEO. “We are thrilled to have Mohegan Sun join us in this mission. As a leading integrated entertainment resort with a state-of-the-art venue and innovative vision for hosting events, Mohegan is the ideal partner as we enter into our second century of service to America’s outstanding young women.”
In addition to the epic one-night finale, other exciting events and preliminary competitions will take place in Mohegan Sun’s Earth Expo & Convention Center, which includes the 125,000 square foot Earth Expo center. To commemorate the organization’s centennial anniversary in September, MAO and Mohegan Sun hope to host iconic celebrations and community events, as well as bring back the beloved “Show Us Your Shoes” parade, in its new home state of Connecticut this year.
Leading up to the nationally broadcast event in Mohegan Sun Arena, the Mohegan Sun leadership team and MAO will lean heavily on guidance from the Mohegan Tribal Health Department as well as local and state COVID-19 health and safety protocols. Further details on ticket sales, scheduling and broadcast partners will be announced in the coming months. To stay updated on the latest, please visit: mohegansun.com and missamerica.org.
ABOUT THE MISS AMERICA ORGANIZATION:
The Miss America Organization, a 501(c) (4), is one of the most recognizable household names in America working to empower young women through education and service. The Miss America Organization is comprised of 51 licensed state organizations, including all 50 states and the District of Columbia. Miss America candidates contribute tens of thousands of community service hours annually and have raised more than $17 million for Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals and Miss America scholarships since 2007. The Miss America Foundation, a 501(c) (3), provides academic, community service, and other scholarships to young women.
ABOUT MOHEGAN SUN:
Owned by Mohegan Gaming & Entertainment, Mohegan Sun is one of the largest, most spectacular entertainment, gaming, dining and shopping destinations in the United States. Situated on 185 acres along the Thames River in scenic southeastern Connecticut, Mohegan Sun is home to two unique casinos, 1,600 deluxe hotel rooms, two world-class spas, a golf course, over 80 shops, restaurants and bars as well as three award-winning entertainment venues including a 10,000-seat Arena. Mohegan Sun is within easy access of New York, Boston, Hartford and Providence and located 15 minutes from the museums, antique shops and waterfront of Mystic Country. More information is available by calling 1.888.226.7711 or visiting mohegansun.com. Connect with us on Facebook, follow us on Twitter and Instagram @mohegansun, view us on YouTube and find us on Snapchat at username MoheganSun.
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Feb 23, 2021 | General News, Sports, Uncategorized
FS1, FS2, Westwood One Radio and BEDN to provide wire-to-wire coverage live from Mohegan Sun Arena, March 5th – March 8th.
UNCASVILLE, CT (February 23, 2021) – Coverage for the 2021 BIG EAST Women’s Basketball Tournament presented by Jeep was announced on Friday, with FS1, FS2, the BIG EAST Digital Network presented by SoFi, available on FloSports, and Westwood One Radio combining to showcase all 10 games. Set for March 5th – March 8th, the BIG EAST will play its conference postseason at Mohegan Sun Arena for the first time after announcing a three-year agreement with the 10,000-seat arena located in southeastern Connecticut back in September.
Action tips off on Friday, March 5th with the First Round. BEDN will stream all three games beginning at 11:00am ET when the No. 8 seed faces the No. 9 seed. Play continues with the 7-10 matchup at 2:00pm, before the 6-11 tilt wraps up Day 1 at 5:00pm.
Friday’s 8-9 winner will face the No. 1 seed in the first quarterfinal game on Saturday, March 6th, with tipoff slated for Noon ET. FS1 will provide coverage of the day’s first quarterfinal before FS2 picks up the remaining three games, beginning at 3:00pm when the No. 4 seed faces the No. 5 seed. The evening session tips off with the No. 2 seed against the winner of the 7-10 matchup at 6:00pm on FS2, before the No. 3 seed wraps up the four-game day against the winner of Friday’s 6-11 showdown. Tipoff for that game is slotted for 9:00pm on FS2.
FS1 will air the final three games of the BIG EAST Tournament, beginning with the Semifinals on March 7th. Saturday’s afternoon quarterfinal winners will meet at 3:00pm ET, before Saturday’s evening winners square off at 6:00pm. Semifinal winners will battle on Monday, March 8th, at 8:00pm to determine the conference champion and recipient of the BIG EAST’s automatic bid into the 2021 NCAA Tournament. Westwood One Radio will broadcast the title game, which is available on terrestrial stations across the country, SiriusXM and westwoodonesports.com. Specific channels will be solidified prior to March 8th.
No fan access is anticipated at the 2021 BIG EAST Women’s Basketball Tournament. For more information on the event, click HERE, or follow @BIGEASTwbb on Twitter.
2021 BIG EAST Women’s Basketball Tournament presented by Jeep
Mohegan Sun Arena – Uncasville, Connecticut
March 5 – First Round
Game 1: 8 seed vs. 9 seed, 11:00am (BEDN on FloSports)
Game 2: 7 seed vs. 10 seed, 2:00pm (BEDN on FloSports)
Game 3: 6 seed vs. 11 seed, 5:00pm (BEDN on FloSports)
March 6 – Quarterfinals
Game 4: Game 1 winner vs. 1 seed, Noon (FS1)
Game 5: 4 seed vs. 5 seed, 3:00pm (FS2)
Game 6: Game 2 winner vs. 2 seed, 6:00pm (FS2)
Game 7: Game 3 winner vs. 3 seed, 9:00pm (FS2)
March 7 – Semifinals
Game 8: Game 4 winner vs. Game 5 winner, 3:00pm (FS1)
Game 9: Game 6 winner vs. Game 7 winner, 6:00pm (FS1)
March 8 – Final
Game 10: Game 8 winner vs Game 9 winner, 8:00pm (FS1)
All times Eastern
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Jan 5, 2021 | Boxing, Entertainment, General News, Sports
One of the premier casino and entertainment destinations in the United States made a vital pivot during the pandemic to safely host major sports, primarily inside the award-winning Mohegan Sun Arena
UNCASVILLE, CT (January 5, 2021) – 2020 was a historic
year that resulted in every major entertainment venue across the globe shutting down due to the worst pandemic in a century, accounting for billions in lost live entertainment revenue. Mohegan Sun Arena still found a way to stay open and generate a new revenue stream by reimagining itself as a residency broadcast center. Industry leading safety protocols joined the hard-working entertainment division at Mohegan Sun, led by Mohegan Gaming & Entertainment’s (MGE) President of Sports & Entertainment, Tom Cantone – and soon major sporting events (Bellator MMA, SHOWTIME Sports and College Basketball), were planned and executed without fans in attendance. As a result, Mohegan Sun Arena became one of only few venues in the United States open and producing live events. In all, these residencies in 2020 brought in 650+ professional and college athletes competing to audiences stretching in the millions across network TV, pay-per-view, social media platforms and streaming services, the latter of which had huge impacts on increased viewership.
“We wanted to adapt in an impactful way to the unforeseen challenges that Mohegan Sun, especially our award-winning Mohegan Sun Arena, suddenly faced when the pandemic arrived,” said Dave Martinelli, Chief Marketing Officer of Mohegan Gaming & Entertainment (MGE). “These high-profile sporting events that we signed on and in which were successfully and collaboratively ran, did just that.”
The first deal was struck by Cantone this past summer when a historic residency with SHOWTIME Sports and Bellator MMA was made, creating the opportunity for a string of nationally televised and much anticipated sporting events to be featured in Mohegan Sun Arena. These live broadcast events with the ViacomCBS owned SHOWTIME Sports and Bellator MMA, which will continue in 2021, featured Premier Boxing events on SHOWTIME and SHOWTIME Pay-Per-View (PPV) as well as action packed Bellator MMA fights most frequently broadcast on the Paramount Network and CBS Sports Network. The success of the ViacomCBS residencies soon led to additional interest from other major sports – including the NCAA. Martinelli netted a deal to host 25+ Division 1 NCAA men’s and women’s college basketball teams over the course of 10 days in late November and early December 2020. The agreement came together through partnerships with The Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame and Gazelle Group.
“We created positive momentum with the incredible bubble-site residencies Mohegan Sun Arena hosted for SHOWTIME Boxing and Bellator MMA,” said Cantone. “Our efforts to keep our Arena in action proved how important relationships can be and allowed for additional opportunities such as “Bubbleville” to come to fruition. Through all of these events, comprehensive health and safety standards were carried out with tremendous efficiency by everyone involved, including the healthcare professionals with the Mohegan Tribal Health Department and other healthcare teams assisting us. I’m extremely proud of what our Mohegan Sun management, team members and our partners executed in such a challenging year.”
“Bubbleville,” as it was billed and came to be known in national press coverage ahead of and during its run from November 25th – December 5th of 2020, saw multiple big-time teams from the likes of Villanova, Florida, Virginia, USC, Virginia Tech, Boston College, Uconn and Arizona State take the floor for the start of their seasons. Similar to the boxing and MMA events, in-person crowds were not present though various games were played to national audiences through ESPN networks and the online streaming platform, FLOHOOPS. After unfortunate setbacks to start, where some teams were not able to take part in “Bubbleville,” the tournaments moved forward, in large part due to the strict safety measures enacted and vital testing schedules conducted by Hartford Healthcare and Mirimus, who administered 2,800 tests among teams and staff.
“Bubbleville protocols included all teams, staff and other vital personnel like referees and broadcasters to take saliva based tests upon arrival and during their stay in the bubble,” said Dave Martinelli, Mohegan Gaming & Entertainment’s CMO. “We hit some setbacks just as the games were set to begin, though focus wasn’t lost, and what followed was 10 days of great College Basketball under a tight system of the type rarely seen before at a casino resort destination.”
Villanova’s championship winning head coach, Jay Wright, also commented to APNews mid-way through “Bubbleville” at Mohegan Sun by saying, “You feel safe, you know you can get a game in here and you know the team you’re playing is going to be safe. I think that’s going to be important throughout this year to find environments like this.”
More than 17,000 hotel room nights were booked at Mohegan Sun’s Sky Tower and Earth Tower during these three major sporting deals. In total, Mohegan Sun gained vast exposure on a variety of media platforms including CBS Sports, ESPN, Paramount Network, Showtime Network, YouTube, the Bellator App, DAZN, TV Spots 5 UK and additional streaming services like FLOHOOPS.
“The exposure we were able to receive as part of these opportunities last year was highly significant,” said Jeff Hamilton, President & General Manager of Mohegan Sun. “Bubbleville hosted a game on Thanksgiving night, live on ESPN, where the Arizona StateSun Devils battled and fell to the #4 Villanova Wildcats. This game had a household Television audience of 591,000, equating to nearly 1 million overall potential viewers. This was just one of many big-time national audiences our venue and brand was a part of in 2020.”
Additional highly rated events, live from Mohegan Sun Arena last year, included Bellator 249 (Cyborg vs. Blencowe on October 15th), Bellator 250 (Mousasi vs. Lima on October 29th) and Bellator 254 (Macfarlane vs. Velasquez on December 10th), among others. And one of the most anticipated boxing events came on September 26, 2020, when in a WBC World Middleweight title fight, Jermall Charlo defeated Sergly Derevyanchenko in a 12 round unanimous decision. Boxing history was also made on this night as the fight card included four other World Championship Title fights live from Mohegan Sun Arena and broadcast to viewers worldwide on Showtime Pay-Per-View (PPV). The pandemic created an opportunity to capture a home audience of more than 12 million viewers during the ViacomCBS broadcasts, with ratings in the double digits.
“During an unprecedented year, we found a way to generate a new revenue stream, create impactful brand exposure, fill hotel rooms and bring back an entertainment workforce,” said Cantone. “No virus could kill the spirit of this incredible team who made the words, “Live from Mohegan Sun Arena,” a monumental achievement in 2020.”
ABOUT MOHEGAN SUN ARENA
Mohegan Sun Arena is now ranked consistently among the top venues in the world according to Billboard Magazine, Pollstar and Venues Now and is also consistently ranked top 15 in the world for “All Size Venues.” The award–winning venue was named “#1 Social Media Venue in the World” in 2016 and is a seven–time Academy of Country Music Awards (ACM) national award–winner for “Arena of the Year,” with the most recent recognition coming in 2019. In 2020, Mohegan Sun Arena remained one of the top venues in the world according to year-end reports by both Pollstar and Venues Now. For more information and updates on Mohegan Sun Arena, call 1.888.226.7711 or visit Mohegan Sun.
ABOUT MOHEGAN GAMING & ENTERTAINMENT
Mohegan Gaming & Entertainment (MGE) is a master developer and operator of premier global integrated entertainment resorts, including Mohegan Sun in Uncasville, Connecticut, Inspire in Incheon, South Korea, and Niagara Casinos in Niagara, Canada. MGE is owner, developer, and/or manager of integrated entertainment resorts throughout the United States, including Connecticut, New Jersey, Washington, Pennsylvania, Louisiana, Northern Asia, Niagara Falls, Canada, and coming soon pending regulatory approval, Las Vegas, Nevada. MGE is owner and operator of Connecticut Sun, a professional basketball team in the WNBA and New England Black Wolves, a professional lacrosse team in the National Lacrosse League. For more information on MGE and our properties, visit www.mohegangaming.com.
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