Another month, another record
Another monthly sports betting handle record has been set in New Jersey. Bets totaling $487m were placed during the month of October, which saw the state close in on the half-billion-dollar mark.
October is a busy time for sportsbooks, as the MLB playoffs and World Series takes place. It’s also the month in which NHL and NBA seasons kick off and the NFL season gets into full swing.
eclipses the previous record that was set in September by $42m
The New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement’s figures highlight that the $487m handle for October eclipses the previous record that was set in September by $42m. The October handle also represents a year-on-year increase of a whopping 87.2%.
A staggering 85.5% of the total handle was generated through mobile sportsbooks. This showcases what a revelation legal mobile sports betting has been for the state.
Increasing profitability for the sportsbooks
The profitability of sportsbooks in the state is also on the rise.
Jeff Gural, the operator of the Meadowlands Racetrack, which lies just outside of New York City, explained why sports betting has been such a success to date in the Garden State.
He believes one of the main reasons is because New York is yet to legalize mobile sports betting. Sports betting is only allowed at the state’s upstate casinos. Many New Yorkers cross over state lines into New Jersey in order to place their bets via mobile. Gural said:
It’s clearly a factor of New York sitting on its hands. It’s not going to last forever.”
Latest sportsbook rankings
Meadowlands Racetrack is the strong leader of the New Jersey sports betting market, thanks to its partnership with PointsBet and FanDuel.
It also helps that the Meadowlands Racetrack is located in close proximity to New York City. In October alone, the facility reported revenue of almost $25m, which compares to just $3.5m in November 2018.
Next on the list was Resorts Digital, which is a partner of DraftKings, with revenue of $10.5m. Monmouth Park Racetrack was third on the listed with $2.8m in revenue from sports betting.
New contender in town
BetMGM has just launched a partnership with Yahoo Sports that could shake things up in the New Jersey rankings.
This new partnership between Yahoo Sports and BetMGM sees betting odds displayed on Yahoo Sports. New Jersey residents who click on these odds are then taken straight to the BetMGM sportsbook, where bets can be placed.
Big bets on popular sports
There were significant boosts in revenue for some sportsbooks following coverage of bets placed by businessman Jim “Mattress Mack” McIngvale. He placed millions of dollars on the Houston Astros to win the World Series, which they ultimately lost to the Washington Nationals.
McIngvale reportedly bet $1.25m on the Astros with Unibet
McIngvale reportedly bet $1.25m on the Astros with Unibet, which has a sports betting license with the Hard Rock. This helped boost the online revenue for sports betting at the Hard Rock to $1.8m in October, which eclipsed the $250,000 generated in September.
The total sports betting handle for completed bets this year is around $3.4bn.
Online growth
It was not just the sportsbooks that did well in October. Online casinos also recorded strong results. Overall, there was a year-on-year increase of 69% in revenue for these platforms, hitting $45.2m. The casinos in Atlantic City now rely heavily on their online revenues to try and stay afloat.
When you combine all forms of gambling together, there was a total gambling revenue in October of $293.8m, which is a year-on-year increase of almost 30%.
