New Jersey Nets Strong Sports Betting Results in December

The New Jersey legal sports betting industry kept chugging along in December.

A good month of December took New Jersey sports betting apps and the state's retail providers over the $1 billion mark in terms of revenues for the year, making the Garden State the only sports betting jurisdiction other than New York to reach that milestone mark.

According to the New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement December report, the state's operator revenue haul was cause for celebration. New Jersey sports wagering sites reported the third best revenue month ever during December.

New Jersey's December sports betting handle, however, failed to reach new heights, although it did come in as the seventh-highest legal sports wagering handle the state has ever seen.

$1.28 billion handle reported in December

New Jersey sports betting took in $1.28 billion in wagers in December, not quite a top-five all-time month, but a top-10 one.

The $1.28 billion is a healthy drop from the $1.623 billion in November, but that figure is up more than $200 million from December of 2022's $1.055 billion sports betting take.

December's haul nearly put New Jersey’s 2023 total sports betting handle at $12 billion. A total of $11,972,321,473 was taken in by New Jersey sportsbooks throughout 2023, with many people taking advantage of the top NJ sportsbook promos.

Revenues impress

New Jersey’s best sports betting apps had their third-best month ever in terms of revenues in December. Operators totaled $109.4 million in gross gaming revenues - a 24.8% increase when compared to $87.7 million reported in December 2022.

December's revenue totals rank behind only $114.8 million in November 2021 and $111.1 million from September - the only two better months for Garden State sportsbooks’ bottom line.

$109.4 million is a nice month-over-month jump from nearly $95.9 million in November.

With December's revenue totals added in, $1.01 billion in revenue was generated for New Jersey sports betting apps in 2023. That's a 31.9% year-over-year increase from $763.0 million in 2022.

$13.9 million in tax revenue was collected from New Jersey’s best sportsbooks in December. It took the total 2023 New Jersey sports betting industry tax bill to $128.9 million, up about $31 million from 2022.

Meadowlands tops earnings

The Meadowlands partnership of sportsbooks, which consists of FanDuel New Jersey, PointsBet New Jersey, and SuperBook New Jersey claimed their familiar spot as the top revenue earner in the Empire State industry. December revenue totals for the trio came in at $49,300,000. While impressive, it was the first time in three months that the combo hasn't combined for at least $50 million in monthly earnings.

Resorts Digital, which counts DraftKings as its major earner, was second in terms of December revenues. Resorts tallied $34.8 million in revenue in December.

Football pays off

Football was the most bet on sports in the New Jersey market in December, followed by basketball. But football betting stood out during the month. A total of $399.2 million was wagered on pigskin in December and thanks to a 7.5% hold, a record $29.7 million in football winnings flowed to the state's sportsbooks.