A record-breaking January for New Jersey gambling, even as in-person casino winnings fall
Four major gambling revenue records were smashed in New Jersey in January
ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. — Four major gambling revenue records were smashed in New Jersey in January as 2024 got off to a rousing start for everything except the thing casinos care about most: the amount of money won from in-person gamblers.
Internet gambling revenue, sports betting revenue, the total amount of money wagered on sports, and total casino-sports betting-internet revenue all set new records in January, according to figures released Friday by the state Division of Gaming Enforcement.
The total amount won by Atlantic City's nine casinos, the three horse tracks that take sports bets, and their online partners was more than $559 million, up 28% from a year earlier.
Much of that was powered by a historic month of internet gambling ($183 million, up nearly 20% from a year ago) and sports betting (nearly $171 million, up more than 136%).
However, those revenue streams must be shared with third-party providers, including tech platforms and sports books, and that money is not solely for the casinos to keep. That is why the casinos consider their core business to be money won from in-person gamblers.
Harsher winter weather in January 2024 contributed to in-person casino winnings that were lower than January 2023, when the weather was milder, said Jane Bokunewicz, director of the Lloyd Levenson Institute at Stockton University, which studies the Atlantic City casino market.
“It’s likely brick-and-mortar activity was diverted to online channels, boosting the internet gaming and online sports betting totals," she said.
The in-person total continues to decline, still lagging the levels seen before the COVID19 pandemic began in early 2020. In January,
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