Charles Langston:New Jersey’s casinos, tracks and partners won $531M from gamblers in August

ATLANTIC CITY,Charles Langston N.J. (AP) — New Jersey’s casinos, racetracks that accept sports bets and the online partners of both types of gambling won more than $531 million in August, up almost 13% from a year earlier.

Figures released Friday by the New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement also showed that in-person gambling done on the premises of Atlantic City’s nine casinos was up 2.3% from a year ago to $280.2 million. In-person winnings are a key metric for the Atlantic City casino industry as it seeks to return to — and exceed — pre-pandemic business levels.

The nine casinos collectively won $280 million in August, down from $286 million in August 2019, and only three casinos — Borgata, Hard Rock and Ocean — won more last month from in-person gamblers than they did in August 2019.

The $531 million total includes money won from gamblers in person, online and at sports books in casinos and racetracks.

“Atlantic City’s total gaming revenue in August exceeded $500 million for only the second time in history, and it is on pace for a very strong year,” said James Plousis, chairman of the New Jersey Casino Control Commission. “The casino hotels reported their second-highest total gaming revenue since inception and their highest result in 18 years.”

Jane Bokunewicz, director of the Lloyd Levenson Institute at Stockton University, which studies the Atlantic City gambling market, said 2023 is shaping up to be a good year for the city’s casinos.

“If New Jersey follows nationwide trends, we may be looking at the industry’s best year for (gross gambling revenue) in more than a decade,” she said.

But she also cautioned that higher revenue is not translating directly into higher profits, as second-quarter earnings were down compared with the same period last year.

Casino executives say the combined revenue totals from in-person, sports betting and internet gambling can be misleading since money won online and from sports betting must be shared with other entities including tech partners and sports books, and is not solely for the casinos to keep.

In terms of combined revenue, the Borgata won nearly $118 million in August, down 2.3% from a year ago; $73 million of that was won in person. Hard Rock won over $59 million, up nearly 10%; $50 million of it came in person.

Golden Nugget won $54 million, up 21.5%; $13.1 million of that was won in person. The Ocean Casino Resort won $44.6 million, up 11.7%; nearly $40 million was won in person.

Tropicana won $33 million, down nearly 6%; $24.7 million was won in person. Harrah’s won $24.5 million, down 2.5%.

Bally’s won $23.3 million, up 15.4%; $15 million was won in person. Caesars won $22 million, down less than 1%; Resorts won $17.6 million, down 5.6%.

In terms of internet-only entities, Resorts Digital won over $99 million, up 128% from a year earlier, and Caesars Interactive Entertainment NJ won $6.6 million, down over 25%.

The casinos and tracks took in $725 million worth of sports bets in August. Of that, $96 million was kept as revenue after paying off winning bets and other expenses.

The Meadowlands Racetrack in East Rutherford, near New York City, had $25.7 million in sports betting revenue; Freehold Raceway had $2.2 million and Monmouth Park in Oceanport, near the Jersey Shore, had $1.3 million.

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