Golden Nugget AC launched a land-based sportsbook this week and expects a mobile sports betting app in late-September.
Golden Nugget Atlantic City received approval by the Division of Gaming Enforcement to open a land-based sportsbook on Tuesday. Golden Nugget is the 6th Atlantic City casinos to receive approval to accept single-game sports bets.
Morris Bailey’s Resorts Casino received DGE approval to be the 5th Atlantic City sportsbook. The Resorts Casino sportsbook and racebook opened on Wednesday, followed 90 minutes later by Golden Nugget’s sportsbook.
The Division of Gaming Enforcement released July 2018 figures for the already-operating sportsbooks, with the combined winnings between all Atlantic City sportsbooks and the racebooks around the state (Monmouth Park, Meadowlands Racetrack) generating a combined total of $40.6 million.
Before this week’s openings, the four Atlantic City casinos with operating brick-and-mortar sportsbooks were Borgata, Harrah’s, Bally’s, and Ocean Resort Casino.
NFL Sports Betting Coming in August
With the addition of Golden Nugget and Resorts Casino, that total should increase in August 2018. August also is the first month with NFL football on the schedule of bets, though the games will be NFL’s preseason schedule.
The NFL regular season begins on Thursday, September 6 when the Atlanta Falcons visit the Philadelpia Eagles. Opening Sunday is September 9, when the full NFL schedule kicks off.
Once the NFL regular season launches in the second week of September, sportsbooks should experience their best 5-month stretch of the year. Like NFL’s television viewership, NFL sports betting generates the most revenue for US bookmakers.
NCAA Football Betting in September
NCAA football betting also is a big generator of revenues, though New Jersey banned wagers on universities and colleges with physical campuses in New Jersey. Atlantic City bettors will not be able to bet on Rutgers games, though they can wager on all other games in the Big Ten. Major conferences like the SEC, ACC, Big 12, and Pac 10 are available for sports betting, too.
NCAA college football begins on August 25, but the full schedule will not be available until the next weekend on September 1, when most NCAA teams begin to play games.
Resorts Casino accepts online and mobile sports bets at the moment, powered by Stars Group’s BetStars software. BetStars is a sister site to PokerStars, which already offered online poker and casino games through the Resorts Casino website.
Resorts Casino Mobile Sportsbook
The DraftKings mobile betting app for Resorts Casino should be a major advantage for Resorts Casino and BetStars, at least until the other Atlantic City casinos market their own smartphone sports betting app. Resorts Casino will be able to market to bettors on the go, who can wager anytime all day and anywhere they have WiFi service.
Resorts Casino’s ad copy already uses those same phrases. On a page featuring the Resorts Casino Android and Apple IOS sports betting downloads, the sales copy says, “With the ResortsCasino.com mobile app, you can turn any dull moment into an adventure in just a few taps.”
The ad continues, “Whether you’re at home or on the go, we’ll show you how playing online casino games in NJ and winning real money on the app is a great way to make boring everyday situations way more interesting.”
Mark Giannantonio on DraftKings, FanDuel
Resorts CEO Mark Giannantonio said the deals Morris Bailey put together with DraftKings and FanDuels should give their online and mobile sportsbooks an edge, though the various partners will be rivals, too.
When asked whether they were “rivals or partners”, Mark Giannantonio said, “Look, we’re all competitors. I just credit Morris Bailey for putting these deals together. It took someone like him to transform this property.”
Golden Nugget Sportsbook
People should not overlook Golden Nugget Casino’s eventual entry into the New Jersey sports betting market – and especially its online bookmaker site. Golden Nugget’s partnership with SugerHouse Casino revolutionized New Jersey’s online casino industry, as Golden Nugget quickly overtook Borgata as the top online casino in the state.
A Golden Nugget executive said he expects to see a mobile sports betting app by late September.
At present, three more Atlantic City casinos do not have sportsbooks: Tropicana, Hard Rock, and Caesars. Bettors can expect Hard Rock Atlantic City to open a sportsbook eventually, as that gaming company has spent $500 million in their land-based casino and will want a comprehensive service. Caesars Atlantic City might never have a sportsbooks, since Caesars Entertainment already owns two other sportsbooks in the city: Harrah’s and Bally’s.
New Jersey Racetracks with Sportsbooks
Eldorado Resorts bought Tropicana Entertainment for $1.85 billion from Carl Icahn in April 2018. Since Eldorado has never competed in New Jersey before, their future moves are less certain to predict. Once again, given the huge investment, one would expect Eldorado Resorts to invest in a Tropicana sportsbook eventually.
Three racetracks in New Jersey still do not have land-based sportsbooks: Freehold Raceway, Garden State Park (closed), and Atlantic City Race Course (closed). Because Garden State Park in Cherry Hill is near Philadelphia, one might expect someone to buy the license to that racetrack and open a sportsbook that would welcome Philadelphia gamblers, but no rumors to that effect have circled since the May 14 US Supreme Court decision which legalized land-based sports betting in 46 states, including New Jersey.
