
In October, sports bettors in New Jersey and Nevada wagered over $1 billion. NJ sports betting handle reached a high-water mark of $487.9 million, representing an 87.2% increase over the previous year. Nevada’s books took $543.9 million over the same period, a 2.9% jump propelled by more enthused wagering on football and baseball. Most betting in NJ was taken in by FanDuel Sportsbook, with over 60% of all mobile betting.
New Jersey posted strong numbers
In May, New Jersey’s sports betting handle surpassed Nevada’s. Since the PASPA federal provisions were overturned in June 2018, New Jersey and other states have seen their performance rise, but not to Nevada’s detriment. Rather than eating into Nevada’s revenue, regional sports betting is contributing more vigorously to the overall handle.
October’s gross revenue report from NJ’s Department of Gaming Enforcement reveals strong numbers for the state’s major casinos, including Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa, Hard Rock Atlantic City, Harrah’s Atlantic City, and Ocean Casino Resort.
Sportbook | October Handle |
---|---|
Bally’s Park Place LLC | $233,745 |
Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa | $1,846,172 |
Golden Nugget | $536,106 |
Hard Rock Atlantic City | $1,965,348 |
Harrah’sAtlantic City Operating Company | $92,449 |
Ocean Casino Resort | $2,332,763 |
Resorts Casino Hotel (DGMB Casino LLC) | $265,320 |
Resorts Digital Gaming | $10,558,087 |
Tropicana Casino & Resort | $390,244 |
New Meadowlands Racetrack | $24,794,712 |
Darby Development (Monmouth Park) | $2,841,991 |
Mobile bet percentage is also high in Pennsylvania, and likely to break out as more mobile operators come up in the state.
The total sports betting handle is expected to continue being supported by full mobile states Colorado, Indiana, New Hampshire, Tennessee, and West Virginia. In Illinois however, the requirement for online sports bettors to register in-person at a casino could prove a tad troublesome.
The Silver State still looking good
The strength of online betting in these states did not markedly impact Nevada’s handle, which has ebbed and flowed throughout 2019. Football handle inched 4.5% higher over last year to $355.7 million and represented a whopping 65.4% of the total handle.
Thanks to the World Series, baseball handle grew 11.7% to $83 million, while revenue gained a whopping 40.2% to $11.5 million. Some credit can be reasonably attributed to Jim “Mattress Mack” McIngvale who placed over $10 million in sports bets across the country for a Houston Astros victory in Las Vegas. He used bets made in New Jersey – where he is estimated to have poured at least $5 million – and Mississippi as a hedge against a customer promotion assuring buyers at his Houston stores a full rebate on mattresses over $3,000 in the event of an Astros win.