The Mohegan Tribal Gaming Authority has agreed to sell the Connecticut Sun to business magnate Tilman Fertitta and his family in a deal that will relocate the WNBA team to Houston.
Following reports in recent days, Mohegan confirmed the deal on Monday in a press release. Mohegan confirmed that it will be entitled to receive aggregate proceeds of $300m, constituting the highest sale price ever for an WNBA team. Mohegan will get $150m upon the close of the transaction and the rest on or before Dec. 31, 2026.
The WNBA Board of Governors still needs to approve the sale and the move. If and when that happens, the Sun will remain the only major league professional sports team based in Connecticut for one more season before becoming the Houston Comets from 2027. A previous incarnation of the Comets was one of the original WNBA franchises and won the first four championships from 1997 to 2000.
Mohegan says sale will allow greater gaming investment
Mohegan is the owner, developer, and manager of several casino resorts in North America, including venues in Connecticut and Pennsylvania and two casinos on the Canadian side of Niagara Falls in Ontario. It also runs the Mohegan Digital online gaming platform.
The tribal gaming authority has owned the Sun since it bought the team in 2003, becoming the first independent owner in the WNBA. It moved the Sun from Orlando to Connecticut and the team has played at Mohegan Sun Arena, a 10,000-seat multi-purpose indoor arena located within the Mohegan Sun resort, for 23 years. The arena was the first major pro sports venue in the U.S. to be owned and operated by a Native American tribe.
“Mohegan owes an enormous amount of gratitude first and foremost to our extraordinary fans cheering on the team for 23 incredible seasons,” said the Mohegan Tribal Council’s Joe Soper in a statement. “This team — and what the talented women who have worn this uniform over the years have meant to Mohegan Sun, our region and the impact they’ve made both on and off the court, has been nothing short of remarkable.”
Mohegan Chief Financial Officer Ari Glazer said the Sun sale will enable the organization to improve its capital structure and fortify its balance sheet, allowing for both debt repayment and tactical investment in its premier gaming assets.
“With the improvements in free cash flow that will result from this transaction, Mohegan will accelerate its pace of deleveraging and is well positioned to prudently grow the company for years to come,” Glazer added.
At Mohegan’s last public earnings call in February, the company reported that its net revenue was $434.5m from Oct. 1 to Dec. 31, 2025, down 0.2% from the same quarter in 2024. Net revenues from both domestic and international resorts, entertainment revenues, and adjusted EBITDA all decreased year-over-year, but Mohegan Digital achieved its highest-ever quarterly net revenue, adjusted EBITDA, and monthly active user totals.
During that call, executives were asked about the future of the Sun, but said only that the team would play its 2026 season in Connecticut.
Fertitta rumored to be keen on Caesars takeover
The Sun’s soon-to-be owner, multi-billionaire gambling entrepreneur Fertitta, already owns the NBA’s Houston Rockets. Currently the U.S. ambassador to Italy in the Donald Trump administration, he is also the largest single shareholder in Nevada-based Wynn Resorts.
He is also rumoured to be one of the frontrunning potential buyers of Caesars Entertainment, according to a recent report from the Wall Street Journal. His company, Fertitta Entertainment, is reportedly exploring a deal that could be worth as much as approximately $7bn, at $34 per share.
Fertitta Entertainment has also owned Golden Nugget Casinos since the mid-2000s.
Fertitta stepped down as Chief Executive Officer of his company last year, around the time he was confirmed by the Senate in April 2025 as an ambassador under President Trump.
