Betting revenues rise in New Jersey

New Jersey has reported impressive betting revenues in July, with two new casinos in Atlantic City, The Hard Rock and the Ocean Resort, gain.

The Hard Rock, owned by Florida’s Seminole tribe, and the Ocean Resort, owned by Denver developer Bruce Deifik, generated $32.4 million and $15.8 million in July casino revenue, respectively. However, revenue figures fell for the other seven casinos in New Jersey, including some well-known ones like Caesars Entertainment Corp. and MGM Resorts International.

The results show the initial impact of the new resorts on the city, an East Coast gambling hub. Total betting revenue for the casinos rose 13 per cent to $302.1 million.

The results include sports betting, first introduced in June at casinos and racetracks. Sports wagering totalled $3.83 million in July, compared with $3.46 million for the two weeks in June that it was available. Online wagering grew 26 per cent to $26 million.

Among the locations with sports wagering, the Meadowlands led with $1.36 million in revenue. On July 14, PaddyPower Betfair Plc opened a FanDuel-branded sports book at the track in East Rutherford, New Jersey. Ocean Resort, which has reached a deal with London-based William Hill Plc, took in $1.04 million, while Monmouth Park, also William Hill’s site, took in $856,280. MGM’s Borgata took in $562,830, while Bally’s did $17,788.

The results allowed the Hard Rock, a remodelling of President Donald Trump’s Taj Mahal casino, to claim the No. 3 spot among the city’s nine casinos. That property, and the Ocean Resort, formerly known as the Revel, both opened in June.

Source: bloomberg.com