Sports betting and casino gaming continue to thrive in New Jersey, particularly in the iGaming sector. Both areas saw quality earnings for December, though sports betting dropped somewhat when compared to the previous year. Analysts expect that with more states entering the sports betting industry, New Jersey will soon lose its top spot.

December Sports Betting Earnings

The online and retail sports betting providers in New Jersey took in $1.23 billion wagers last month. This was a great handle, falling just short of a record set in October. Betting volume was up over 23% when compared to the same month last year. The month produced only $59 million in revenues which was a slight decrease from the previous year. That amount provided $8.9 million in taxes to the state and local governments.

Football took in just over $398 million wagers, with basketball providing $384.4 million. The large NFL schedule and the popularity of basketball reported drove the month’s action. For December, the online sportsbooks brought in $1.1 billion of the wagers, which was more than 90% of the monthly handle.

Now that December totals are in, we can see how sports betting finished out the year. In total, $10.9 billion in bets were placed, in online and retail wagers.

Gross revenues came in at over $815 million when compared to 2020 and local taxes just over 104% to $122 million. PlayUSA.com Network analyst Eric Ramsey commented on last year’s results by stating:

“2021 will be remembered as the year that New Jersey was the unrivaled leader of the U.S. market, even if that status proves to be short-lived. New York will almost certainly assume the crown soon, while New Jersey will potentially slip behind Nevada and others in the coming year. Still, sports betting will remain a powerful revenue generator for the state.”

Online Casino and Poker Gaming Totals

Now, let’s look at the poker and online casino side of things. The two ended the year with over $133 million in revenue, which broke the previous record from October 2021 of $127 million. Revenue bumped up 25% from the previous December.

For 2021, the online casino and poker industry earned $1.4 billion in gross revenues which is a more than 40% increase from 2020. Online casino gaming by itself brought in $1.3 billion, a 43% increase from the previous year.

In total, the state was able to earn $239.2 million in taxes. This was over 40% more than 2020’s earnings. It was surprising to watch as the online gaming industry expanded in 2021 after a successful 2020 amidst the COVID-19 pandemic.