Record igaming drives New Jersey gambling revenue to $526.6m in March

Revenue is clear of $487.4m in March 2023. The total was also up 14.1% from $461.5m in New Jersey in February this year.

Land-based gambling again generated the highest proportion of revenue from all active markets in the Garden State. Revenue from land-based gambling amounted to $239.8m, up 4.9% year-on-year.

Some $172.7m of all land-based revenue came from slot machines, an increase of 4.8%. The remaining $67.0m was generated by table games, up 4.9% from last year.

New Jersey smashed igaming revenue record again

Turning to online gambling, revenue here reached $197.2m, up 19.9% from 2023 and a new monthly record for New Jersey. Igaming revenue is now just $42.6m behind total land-based revenue in New Jersey.

Online slots accounted for $194.8m of igaming revenue in March, a rise of 19.4%. However, in contrast, internet poker revenue slipped 5.4% to $2.4m.

Golden Nugget remains the igaming market leader in New Jersey, posting monthly revenue of $57.1m. Resorts Digital placed second with $48.9m, ahead of the Borgata on $43.8m.

Sports betting woes in March 

Looking now to sports betting, revenue fell 3.6% to $89.7m. This was, however, 32.7% more than February’s $67.6m total.

Handle-wise, players spent $1.33bn betting on sports during March, up 36.3% year-on-year. Of this total, $12.6m was wagered online and $43.8m at retail sportsbooks.

As has been the case for some time, Meadowlands, along with partners FanDuel, PointsBet and SuperBook, led the sector. Revenue at Meadowlands in March amounted to $51.7m.

DraftKings and Resorts World were again second in this segment with revenue of $24.2m. Borgata and BetMGM placed third with $6.3m.

New Jersey year-to-date revenue at $1.55bn

In terms of the year-to-date, total market revenue for the three months to the end of March stood at $1.55bn. This is 15.7% more than at the same point in 2023.

Land-based gambling revenue is level at $656.1m, with slots down 0.4% to $474.4m but table games up 1.4% to $181.8m.

Igaming revenue is up 22.0% to $562.8m. This includes $555.7m in slots revenue, a rise of $22.5%, and $7.1m from poker, down 4.6%.

Despite March’s decline, sports betting revenue is 22.0% higher at $328.0m. Player spending for the period amounted to $4.13bn, with $4.00bn bet online and $129.3m via retail.

Could New Jersey be set for higher online gambling taxes?

The results come as New Jersey operators potentially face a tax hike for online gambling. Last week, senator John McKeon formally introduced a new bill to increase tax for online gambling and sports betting to 30%.

Currently, online gambling and sports betting are taxed at 15% and 13% of gross gaming revenue respectively.

Should lawmakers approve the proposal, it would take effect on next 1 January that occurs after the date of enactment, per the bill text.