Sports wagering may be too young an industry for a state to have a “turn back the clock” month, but New Jersey served notice it still has plenty of juice after the state’s Division of Gaming Enforcement on Monday reported September sportsbook handle totaling $1.3 billion and operator revenue of $111.1 million.
It was the third-highest handle in Garden State history and the 12th monthly total above $1 billion. New Jersey bettors wagered their most since a record $1.35 billion in January 2022, and the only other total higher was the $1.3 billion-plus recorded in November 2021.
Neighboring New York’s rise to prominence following its 2022 mobile launch has eaten into New Jersey’s handle, but time will tell if September’s total in the Garden State is an outlier or the start of a resurgence. It was nearly 50% higher than the $866.7 million in accepted wagers in September 2022 and 79% higher versus August.
Though sportsbooks’ win rate finally cooled off to start the fall — the collective 8.6% hold was the first under 10% since April — the $111.1 million in revenue was still the second-highest operator haul in state history. It was the second time revenue topped $100 million in the Garden State, trailing only the record $114.8 million of November 2021.
The revenue total was enough to make New Jersey the first state in the post-PASPA era to surpass $3 billion in operator winnings, clearing the benchmark by $80 million. The $709 million won by sportsbooks this year entering the final quarter of 2023 is 37.2% higher than the same period in 2022. The state saw an inflow of more than $14.2 million in tax receipts, lifting the total for the year above $90.8 million — nearly $24.7 million ahead of last year’s pace.
The parlay train rolls on in the Garden State
Running 2023 YTD Top 10 #SportsBetting handles by state (thru Sept in CAPS)
1 NEW YORK $13B
2 NEW JERSEY $7.77B
3 Illinois $6.69B
4 Nevada $4.87B
5 Ohio $4.54B
6 Pennsylvania $4.27B
7 Arizona $3.91B
8 Virginia $3.23B
9 Colorado $3.17B
10 MASSACHUSETTS $3.08B#GamblingTwitter— Chris Altruda (@AlTruda73) October 16, 2023
New Jersey sportsbooks have been on an unprecedented roll against the public when it comes to parlay wagering, extending their run of holds 20% or higher to six consecutive months by reaching 22.2% in September. The $68.2 million in revenue from multi-leg wagers was the second-highest total in state history, slotting behind the $70.8 million in November 2021 and well ahead of the previous No. 2 mark of $57.2 million last October.
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Baseball, however, provided a larger-than-expected bump to the bottom line for the second straight month. Operators crafted an 11.1% hold — baseball’s highest in-season win rate and second in a row above 10% — to claim $27.5 million in revenue. Operators have collected close to $56.3 million in the last two months — more than half the $109.5 million accrued for 2023 and nearly double the $57.7 million won in all of 2022.
Football handle was up notably compared to September 2022, rising 38.6% to $486.4 million. The public limited the house to a 1.8% hold on those wagers, leaving operators $8.8 million — less than half the $18.1 million from last year’s first full month of football betting.
DraftKings with another big revenue month
Resorts Digital — the online tether of its internal book and DraftKings — had never cleared $30 million in monthly revenue prior to August’s record $56.9 million, but it nearly had back-to-back $50 million months. Resorts came within $150,000 of that benchmark, finishing with more than double its $22.4 million won in September 2022.
The Meadowlands Racetrack — tether to FanDuel, PointsBet, and SuperBook — ended a three-month run of revenue under $25 million, getting a bounce to just over $32 million. That was just enough to lift the combined all-time revenue of the trio above $1.4 billion and leave them less than $5 million from $300 million in 2023.
Gross online mobile revenue totaled $106.4 million for New Jersey sportsbooks for an 8.5% hold, while brick-and-mortar venues cleared more than $6.2 million from $43.5 million worth of wagers, good for a 14.3% win rate.
