According to a recent article on Bloomberg.com, sports betting in New Jersey has set the state’s gambling operations on fire. Times have never been better for the casinos, racetracks, and sportsbooks in the Garden State. The fact is, Garden Staters and our neighbors in New York are crazy about sports, and sports betting.
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Sports Betting Revitalizes Gambling Across the Garden State
Online sporting betting, which was introduced in New Jersey mid-summer of last year, generated an amazing $96 million in revenue in just the first 10 months of the year, according to state gambling regulators.
Online gambling on games such as slot machines and blackjack is also on the rise, with projected revenue expected to jump by 51% this year. That would put the projected figure at $452 million for 2020, according to industry-backed research released in February.
While online gambling has been legal in the Garden State for more than six years, the level of play hasn’t taken off as much as early proponents had hoped. That goes for gambling on both the state and national levels. As it stands, only New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Delaware have operational online casinos. However, West Virginia is likely to introduce online casino games in the state next year. Ironically, Nevada limits online betting to just poker and sports.
In 2013, the first year online gambling became legal in New Jersey, $8.4 million was played. The following year, 2014 saw a massive increase, jumping to an astounding $123.1 million. Between 2014 and 2018, gambling revenue saw a steady, gradual increase; 2015 with $149 million, 2016 at $196.9 million, 2017 earning $246 million and 2018 coming in with $299.1 million. The introduction of legal sports betting saw the numbers explode to $452 million.
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Sports Betting Post PASPA
In May 2018 decision on Murphy v. National Collegiate Athletic Association, the Supreme Court of the United States ruled that the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act of 1992 conflicted with the Tenth Amendment. PASPA, in effect, outlawed sports betting nationwide, excluding a handful of states.
Sports betting has exploded across the country after the U.S. Supreme Court lifted the federal ban on sports betting last year. Right now, thirteen states have legal sports-betting operations, with more to come. Six more states have approved it, but don’t yet have any operators in place. New Jersey is currently leading the pack, allowing gamblers to bet online or at brick-and-mortar sportsbooks.
The good news is, online betting in the Garden State hasn’t hurt New Jersey’s nine brick-and-mortar casinos. The nine casinos should experience the revenue climb in a decade, surging 9% to $2.74 billion this year. This is according to a study commissioned by the iDevelopment and Economic Association, a trade group serving online gambling companies.
Jeff Ifrah, an online-gaming attorney and founder of the iDevelopment and Economic Association, expressed the opinion that customers betting on college basketball or playing daily fantasy football are usually younger males. That is compared to slot machine players, who are usually older females. The young male demographic has been captivated by online sports betting, and many are now also betting at sportsbooks inside the casinos. It’s been a unique opportunity to acquire a new type of customer for the traditional, brick-and-mortar casinos.
Finally, shares in the gambling companies doing business in the Garden State have done phenomenally well this year. The earnings for Caesars Entertainment Corp., which is currently being acquired by Eldorado Resorts Inc., have nearly doubled. Flutter Entertainment Plc, which owns the FanDuel brand, has also seen an increase of 36%. That means, even those gambling on the stock market are potential winners.
The bottom line is, all types of gambling continue to benefit the state of New Jersey. The influx of cash trickles down to benefit local businesses, schools, and the tourist industry.
$500
Welcome Package
* New customers only. 20% match bonus up to $500.
$500
Welcome Package
$500
Welcome Package
