New Jersey’s online casinos and poker rooms have surged to yet another record month through January, as the region’s sportsbooks surpassed expectations following the much publicised stellar digital performance in its neighbouring New York.
The former set another revenue record through the month with $137.8m to eclipse the previous best of $133.2m generated one month earlier, as well as increasing 32.8 per cent from $103.7m year-on-year.
Revenue across the segment also rose to a record $4.4m per day over the 31 days of January from $4.3m one year earlier, which ultimately yielded $24.1m in state and local taxes.
Borgata continued to lead the way with $39.1m, up 36.2 per cent from $28.7m, ahead of Golden Nugget Online Gaming’s $36.4m, a 17 per cent uptick from $31.1m, and Resorts Digital, which increased 44.6 per cent to close at $33m (2021: $22.8m).
On a land-based basis, which saw revenue generate $183.6m (2021: $160m) of the $381.6m (2021: $346.1m) total, Borgata and Hard Rock occupied the top two spots once more with revenue of $48.3m (2021: $38.2m) and $34.7m (2021: $26.6m), respectively. Ocean Casino remained in third with $24.1m (2021: $20.4m).
“The momentum for online casinos will remain a stalwart for New Jersey’s gaming industry no matter how much sports betting expands in New York,” noted Eric Ramsey, an analyst for PlayUSA. “Revenue from online casinos has never been more important for the state’s tax collection.”
New Jersey’s online and retail sportsbooks handled nearly $1.35bn in wagers in January, up 10 per cent from $1.2bn in December. Volume recorded a 40.7 per cent uptick from the $958.7m generated in January 2021.
Furthermore, this also surpasses the previous state record of $1.3bn in betting reached in October, which was a US high until New York debuted.
Sportsbooks won $60.2m in gross revenue, which is down 27 per cent from $82.4m in January 2021 but up two per cent from $59m in December. This injected $9.3m into state and local coffers.
Online sportsbooks accounted for $1.2bn in wagering, or 89.7 per cent of the state’s handle in January. FanDuel/PointsBet/SuperBook topped the online market with $35.5m in gross revenue, up from $27.6m in December, to beat DraftKings/Fox Bet/Resorts with $10.2m.
Retail sportsbooks drew $139.2m in wagers, with Meadowlands/FanDuel leading the way with $2.9m in revenue ahead of Resorts Atlantic City.
“Sportsbooks have dealt with neighbours legalising mobile sports betting before and continued to thrive, and it will take a few months before we know for certain the true impact of New York,” said David Danzis, an analyst for PlayNJ.
“But January’s results are certainly encouraging, showing that New Jersey’s gaming industry can weather New York’s expansion.”
