US brick and mortar casinos have been having a rough couple of months. So much so that gaming revenue for the state has dropped by almost 19%. Commercial casinos recorded more than $9 billion on their gaming floors and interactive online and mobile platforms, which was an 18.9% decline compared to the same Q3 period last year.
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October 2020 has been a great month for online gambling
In October, the Garden State’s online casinos and poker license holders spawned more than double the amount that was recorded during the same period last year and almost $6m higher than the state’s last monthly in August. The online casino revenue for the state in October was just under $91m, $93.4 million to be exact, a 108.7% year-on-year improvement.
This is the first time in the state’s 7-year anniversary of iGaming that it has managed to cross the $90-million online casino revenue mark. Online poker also saw a boost rising to $2.5m and by 53.5%. all in all, online revenue is up by almost 103% to reach a remarkable $779m. poker, alternatively, has risen 88.5% to generate a cool $33.4m.
Based on individual properties, the Golden Nugget has continued to maintain the lead when it comes to online casino revenue as we’ve discussed here, recording 28.1m in October. Borgata and its partners BetMGM generated $22.1m, $724k of which was acquired from online poker. In 3rd place came Resorts Digital Gaming and its DraftKings/FoxBet partners generating $21.6m.
The online poker race, on the other hand, was led by Caesars Interactive Entertainment with $952k. Hard Rock Atlantic City also a respectable online poker month with approximately $5.5m while Ocean Casino Resort lagged last with a mere $678k.
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Online gaming in the state is expecting a huge enhancement as Wynn prepares to make a play for the online gaming market. Wynn plans to invest $80 Million in an online betting platform that will potentially help to offset the operator’s land based struggles as we’ve discussed here. Wynn, alongside other land based operators have been struggling to keep their heads above water ever since AC’s 9 physical casinos shut down in mid-March and resumed operations in early July.
State enforced capacity regulations have been a big damper on the live revenue in not just the country but the rest of the world. Now, as the pandemic ravages the rest of society live experience amenities like indoor dining and entertainment may be curtailed even further as the Governor re-considers imposing stricter restrictions that will hurt live revenue even more.
Meanwhile, sports betting operators, on the other hand, have also had a great October as covered here as the state gears up to ease restrictions on college sports bets. Current NJ regulations prohibit local bookmakers from taking any betting action against any state teams. Things might change soon though as the New Jersey state senate committee recently approved a measure that would see wagers on college sports permitted.
The NJ sports betting market keeps thriving
The New Jersey sports wagering market has been making waves and hitting monthly revenues that should be impossible to top. And yet, unsurprisingly, the Garden State is still managing to top its revenues month to month as we’ve covered here. Case in point, punters put up a striking $748.6 million with legal sportsbooks in the state in September, thus topping the previous month’s record by 12.1%.
The return of college football and NFL wagering to an already saturated sports month definitely helped to grow the market even further. For the month of October, NJ reset its previous national wagering record for combined sports betting handle in a month, coming in at a remarkable $803 million with mobile betting handle standing at $744 million.
The revenue generated in October by NJ sportsbooks took the state past $4 billion in overall wagers for the entire year. Once again, the Meadowlands and its two cohorts, FanDuel Sportsbook and PointsBet, occupied the leading position in the market with under $30 million in revenue. Resorts Digital, alongside its partners DraftKings Sportsbook and FOX Bet, came in second generating $14.6 million.
BetMGM and physical casino Borgata generated $4.3 million to take third place in the market. Monmouth Park and associates William Hill, theScore Bet and PlaySugarHouse, alternatively, came in in fourth recording $4.1 million. Ocean Casino license, was last with $3.3 million.
Here is the thing, as long as sports betting continues to experience growth, the benefits should trickle down to online gambling as well. This is because online gambling and sports betting go hand in hand. Most of the NJ operators already have sports betting and casino platforms integrated into one seamless app making cross-selling easier than ever.
As November comes to a draw, the state of New Jersey can expect to continue recording great revenue numbers. The delayed seasons for NBA and NHL should help to lift waging numbers even higher than they were in October. The PGA Tour will also be making an appearance in the month for the first time in its history, which should also have a considerable impact on the overall revenue generated.
Final Thoughts
Sports betting revenues for New Jersey will continue to come in strong, a situation that will persist even as the year comes to a close. Retail casino gaming is the only vertical that has been recording abysmal numbers.
As infected cases in the state continue to soar, players that previously enjoyed live and online gambling are increasingly leaning towards online casino offerings as they are much safer than visiting a physical casino. As such, as long as the pandemic perseveres, online casino gaming should continue to ascend.
Are you a New Jersey resident interested in playing online in our state and taking advantage of the best offers? Check out our curated list of NJ casinos, NJ sportsbooks and online bonuses. And if you are a poker player, please check our list of Best Poker Sites in New Jersey.
$1025
Welcome Package
$25 free bonus + deposit match, first deposit up to $500.
$600
Welcome Package
* New customers only. 100% match bonus based
on first deposit of up yo $600.
$500
Welcome Package
* New customers only. 100% match bonus based
on first deposit of up to $500.
