The most gaming-friendly state once more proves its worth as sports-betting handle hits a new record even though gaming stalled.
New Jersey saw sports-betting handle hit a new record in September led by the Meadowlands skins of FanDuel and PointsBet, which together claimed a somewhat surprising 62% of all handle.
Sports-betting handle rose 68% year-on-year to $749m in the Garden State. Over 90% of that was online.
In comparison, online gaming revenue came in at $87.6m, only slightly below the $87.8m figure from August.
New jersey is the number 1 state on the Wedge Index with 116 points. Its nearest competitor is Pennsylvania with 86.
FanDuel leads
Such is the competitive picture in New Jersey that it is unlikely to be surpassed anytime soon.
Sports-betting GGR revenue came in at $45.1m for the month. FanDuel and PointsBet claimed $28.1m of that total, the next nearest competitors being the Resorts Digital skins from DraftKings and BetStars with $4.8m.
Investors who recently bought into the DraftKings share price offer will doubtless be slightly concerned about the apparent fall off in DraftKings’ popularity in New Jersey.
In gaming, it was the Golden Nugget skins of Betfair, PlaySugarhouse and BetAmerica which took the largest share of the total with $26m or near 30%.
Tracking betMGM share
Next up was Borgata and the betMGM brand stable, with 23% of the gaming total or $20.3m in gaming win. Its sports-betting win stood at $4.1m or over 9% market share.
The combined market share for sports-betting and online gaming for betMGM is 18.3%. This is in line with claims from part-owner GVC that it was “tracking” market share of between 15-20%.
Only slightly behind was the Resorts Digital stable, including DraftKings with 23% of the total or $20m in online gaming win.
Pure madness
New Jersey’s position as the top jurisdiction on the Wedge Index will likely be enhanced by a measure being proposed in the state senate to allow betting on the March Madness games taking place in Newark in 2025.
In a press release, Senator Paul Sarlo put forward a bill to allow wagering on championship collegiate competitions so the Garden State can more fully participate in the expanding sports gaming market.
Under current law, wagering on college games is prohibited in New Jersey. The bill would allow betting on all NCAA-sanctioned tournaments.
High profile
“New Jersey has become the country’s biggest sports betting market, and the Meadowlands is the largest sports wagering facility in the state,” said Senator Sarlo whose legislative district includes the Meadowlands.
“This is an important opportunity we have to capitalize upon.
“We need to support and sustain this growing market that is fast becoming a significant part of our regional and state economies.
“March Madness is a high-profile event on the sports betting calendar and we should be a key player.”
