Connecticut Sun’s Move to Houston Ends Unique Sports Betting Retail Status in WNBA

While the WNBA’s sports betting footprint continues to grow, there is only one home venue in the league where fans can physically walk up and place a bet in person. That distinction belongs to the Connecticut Sun, who play at Mohegan Sun Arena. The venue is part of the Mohegan Sun casino resort, where fans can visit a FanDuel-branded sportsbook.

Mohegan Sun’s traditional sportsbook in Uncasville, Connecticut, has a 140-foot video wall, 33 self-service betting kiosks, lounge seating, and cashier windows. It is the WNBA’s only current home-market casino-resort setup with a retail sportsbook on site.

In recent years, the Phoenix Mercury shared this rare retail betting distinction at the formerly named PHX Arena. However, the team’s ownership group, the Phoenix Suns organization, permanently converted the venue’s FanDuel sportsbook into a premium fan hospitality lounge. In-person betting ended in July 2025 at the now renamed Mortgage Matchup Center. However, the Mercury still has a sports betting partnership via Bally’s which dates back to a 15-year deal announced in 2021. In fact, it was the “first gaming access deal with a professional women’s sports team,” according to the operator.

WNBA Sports Gaming Deals Grow Alongside Team-Level Sponsorships

Previously, gambling sponsorships were limited to marketing, daily fantasy or casino sponsorships, including the Mercury’s uniform partnership with Casino Arizona in 2014, the New York Liberty’s 2015 DraftKings marquee partnership with uniform branding, and Liberty casino sponsorships or activations through Foxwoods Resort Casino and Resorts World Casino. Current gambling operator deals at the franchise level include:

• The Las Vegas Aces multifaceted deal with BetMGM for iGaming and sports betting
• The Aces’ casino sponsorship with Westgate Las Vegas Resort & Casino
• bet365’s official sports betting partnerships with the Chicago Sky and the Indiana Fever
• Treasure Island Resort & Casino sponsorship agreement with the Minnesota Lynx
• Spirit Mountain Casino sponsorship of the Portland Fire
• Snoqualmie Casino and Hotel sponsorship deal with the Seattle Storm
• FanDuel’s announcement as the Toronto Tempo’s iGaming partner in a multi-year deal
•  Penn Entertainment’s multi-channel marketing partnership with the Washington Mystics via the team’s owner, Monumental Sports & Entertainment

Beyond local team deals, the WNBA has negotiated league-wide arrangements. FanDuel and DraftKings serve as the league’s official partners, while Bally, Fanatics Sportsbook, theScore Bet, bet365, and BetMGM are designated as authorized gaming operators

Houston Move Ends Connecticut’s Unique Sports Betting Status

Unfortunately for Sun fans, Connecticut’s unique status is temporary. The team will be relocating to Houston in 2027 after being sold to the Tilman Fertitta family. The move will keep the franchise tied to gambling interests in a different way, even though legal sports betting has not yet come to Texas. In addition to also owning the Houston Rockets, Fertitta owns the Golden Nugget casino chain and is a major Wynn Resorts shareholder. And according to recent media reports, Fertitta ​Entertainment is in talks to with Caesars Entertainment regarding a potential $18 billion takeover offer.

For now, the WNBA has plenty of gambling sponsors. What it does not have, outside Connecticut, is another place where fans can walk up to retail sportsbook window and then go to a game. When the new Cleveland expansion team launches in 2028 at Rocket Arena, fans won’t find a betting window there either, as the venue’s Caesars Sportsbook closed permanently in 2024 to become a fan lounge akin to the one in Phoenix.

Photo Credit: AP/Adam Hunger