The New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement‘s monthly revenue figures for May suggest that Fanatics struggled to make a strong impact in its first few weeks of branded operations in the Garden State. The sportsbook recorded just a shadow of the market share and revenue that its predecessor PointsBet had managed.
In recent months, PointsBet had consistently achieved a double-digit market share in New Jersey and reached as high as 31.6% of the market in April, good for second place in the state, with $32.9 million gross gaming revenue that month. That had been put down, in large part, to the brand reportedly snagging a big-stakes VIP player from DraftKings. Eilers & Krejcik called that single customer, “the biggest losing player in the regulated market by a mile.”
In May, however, the first month of Fanatics Sportsbook taking over PointsBet’s license, that market share fell by 29% month-over-month. Fanatics was credited with holding just 2.3% of the market and $2 million in GGR in May. By comparison, PointsBet took $88.3 million in the state in 2024, which was ranked third at the time it ceased operations.
Whether the huge drop-off indicates that the player is not spending top dollar with the new brand is uncertain. But it was interesting to note that DraftKings’ share jumped from 18% in April to 28% in May, an increase that led some to suggest the VIP player may have returned to that sportsbook.
How is the rest of the market looking?
FanDuel was No. 1 again in New Jersey in May with $36.7 million in gross betting revenue. DraftKings was second with $22.1 million, while BetMGM was way back in third at $5.6 million, down 17.1% on last year’s total.
Caesars was fifth for May in gross revenue with close to $3 million across its two partners, Tropicana Casino & Resort and Monmouth Park, and ESPN Bet’s takings reached $2.6 million, another gain of half a million from April.
Elsewhere, bet365 looks to be gaining market share in the state. The British sportsbook reported $3.5 million in gross revenue for May, a slight uptick from April and its third straight month of over $3 million. That takes its year-to-date revenue in New Jersey to $16.6 million, which is fifth behind FanDuel, DraftKings, PointsBet/Fanatics, and BetMGM.
Another notable conclusion from the May results is that parlays are proving highly profitable for sportsbooks. Operators enjoyed a 20.9% hold on multi-leg parlay wagers, versus 5.1% on single-event bets.
What’s the bigger picture in New Jersey?
Overall, across all online sports betting operators, revenue was down 4.2% year-over-year in May to $78.8 million despite a 7.7% increase in total operator handle over the same period.
However, despite the decline last month, year-to-date total sports betting revenue is up 37% on last year, hitting $513 million. Total handle across mobile, online and retail sports betting in the state has eclipsed $6 billion so far in 2024, up 31.6% on the first five months of 2023.
The Garden State netted $10.4 million in sports betting taxes in May and is now close to having taken $500 million all time.
When it comes to iGaming, revenue was at $192.1 million, its second-highest monthly total in history and the fifth straight month it has been over $180 million. So far this year, online gaming in New Jersey is yielding 20.6% more revenue than it was this time last year. Once June’s results arrive in a month’s time, this will be the first six-month period ever in which New Jersey’s regulated online casino operators have collectively made $1 billion in revenue.
Golden Nugget, which is partnered with FanDuel and others, was the top license-holder with $54.5 million revenue, followed by DraftKings partner Resorts Digital at $49.3 million and BetMGM-associated Borgata at $44 million. Meanwhile, Tropicana and Ocean Casino continue to make gains as both doubled their online casino revenue year-over-year.
