New Jersey’s online and retail sportsbooks continued their string of record months and whopping year-over-year gains in October, nearly reaching its first $500 million month. And that growth should continue with the tip-off of basketball season, according to PlayNJ.com analysts.

“New Jersey has a real shot at surpassing Nevada again, if not in October, some time before the end of the NFL season,” said Dustin Gouker, lead analyst at PlayNJ.com. “The state’s handle is growing at a pace near 100%, year-over-year. And the overlapping of football and basketball should propel New Jersey into new territory.”

New Jersey’s sportsbooks accepted a record $487.9 million in bets in October, an 87% jump from $260.7 million in October 2018, according to official reporting released Thursday. October’s handle beat the previous record of $445.6 million, set in September.

October’s bets yielded a record $46.4 million in revenue, up from $11.7 million in October 2018 and breaking the record $37.9 million set last month. October revenue generated $5.7 million in taxes, and pushed the state’s sports betting industry past the $300 million mark ($331.2 million) in lifetime revenue.

New Jersey’s October handle will likely fall short of Nevada — which generated $528.5 million in October 2018 and will announce October 2019 data later this month — for the second straight month. Combined the two largest U.S. markets are generating $1 billion a month in bets. And the Garden State could use the popularity of basketball — which has generated $698.2 million in bets so far in 2019, the most of any sport — to propel it past Nevada once again.

“If New Jersey is going to pass Nevada during the NFL season, it will be in large part due to the comparative popularity of basketball in the Northeast,” Gouker said. “In Nevada, football betting is king, and it’s nearly as popular in New Jersey. But a key differentiator between the two markets is that New Jersey bettors’ have shown more interest in other major sports, especially basketball.”

$417 million of all October bets were made online, accounting for 85% of New Jersey’s handle. That is up from 84% in September.

FanDuel Sportsbook/PointsBet continued to pace the online market, gaining $20.7 million in gross revenue, up from $13.3 million in September. Resorts Digital’s license, which is now anchored by DraftKings and Fox Bet in addition to its self-branded sportsbook, lost ground by generating $10.6 million, down from $10.7 million in September. The online market leaders were followed by:

• Hard Rock/Bet365/Unibet ($1.8 million, up from $178,255 in September)
• Monmouth/William Hill/Sugarhouse/TheScore ($1.7 million, down from $2.4 million)
• Ocean Casino/William Hill ($1.6 million, up from $1.3 million)
• BetMGM/Borgata ($1.4 million, up from $721,801)
• Caesars Sportsbook/888sport ($536,600, up from $486,668)
• Golden Nugget/BetAmerica ($359,216, up from $336,740)
• Tropicana/William Hill ($40,014, up from $29,783)

FanDuel Sportsbook at The Meadowlands posted $4.1 million in October gross revenue, up from $3.6 million in September, to lead retail sportsbooks. FanDuel was followed in gross revenue by:

• Monmouth Park ($1.2 million, up from $996,844 in September)
• Ocean Casino ($697,659, down from $1.8 million)
• Borgata ($458,351, down from $756,416)
• Tropicana Casino ($350,230, up from $170,792)
• Resorts AC ($265,320, down from $340,117)
• Bally’s AC ($233,745, down from $241,703)
• Hard Rock AC ($123,616, down from $231,150)
• Golden Nugget ($176,890, up from $150,698)
• Harrah’s AC ($92,449, down from $118,102)

“The addition of Fox Bet under the Resorts Digital license has reset the race for the top spot in the online market,” Gouker said. “FanDuel is still the most popular single brand in the state, but it will be worth watching whether it can keep up with DraftKings and Fox Bet.

GOLDEN NUGGET’S ONLINE REVENUE TOP LAND-BASED REVENUE AS ONLINE CASINOS ENJOY RECORD MONTH

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New Jersey’s online casino and poker industry continued its push toward $450 million in annual revenue after a record October, as the Golden Nugget’s online product generated more revenue than its land-based casino for the first time.

Online casino games and poker generated $45.2 million in October, up 69% from $26.8 million in October 2018, and blowing past the previous record of $41.14 million set in September. The industry has now generated an annual best $384.2 million in revenue so far in 2019 — 58% better than the $242.7 million generated in the first 10 months of 2018.

The importance of New Jersey’s digital product can be seen in the online casino market’s heaviest hitter. The Golden Nugget tallied $16.6 million in October, up 71% from $9.7 million in October 2018, to easily lead the online casino market. More importantly, for the first time its online revenue surpassed the revenue its land-based Atlantic City casino generated ($14.8 million).

“What the Golden Nugget continues to prove is that its online casino can generate millions in revenue and grow at an overwhelming pace without a negative impact on their own land-based operations,” said Eric Ramsey, online gambling analyst for PlayNJ.com. “When the first online casinos launched in 2013, many thought such a dynamic would be impossible. But clearly that has been proven wrong.” 

Some other important online casino and poker data from the September report:

• Online casinos generated $6.8 million in tax revenue in October and has now injected $245.1 million into government coffers since launch in November 2013.
• The industry generated $1.5 million per day during the 31 days of October, up from $863,028 per day in October 2018.
• Online casino games generated $43.6 million in October, up from $39.5 million in September. Online poker was flat at $1.6 million.

For more information and analysis on regulated sports betting and online gaming in New Jersey, visit PlayNJ.com/news.

About the PlayUSA.com Network:

The PlayUSA.com Network is a leading source for news, analysis, and research related to the market for regulated online gaming in the United States. With a presence in over a dozen states, PlayUSA.com and its state-focused branches (including PlayNJ.com and PlayPennsylvania.com) produce daily original reporting, publish in-depth research, and offer player advocacy tools related to the advancement of safe, licensed, and legal online gaming options for consumers. Based in Las Vegas, the PlayUSA Network is independently owned and operated, with no affiliations to any casino — commercial, tribal, online, or otherwise.