Last updated: November 24, 2022
Casinos in New Jersey closed March 16 because of the COVID-19 pandemic and didn’t reopen until the July 4th weekend. Atlantic City brick-and-mortar casinos had no revenue at all in the second quarter.
What was bad news for the physical casinos was a huge windfall for the online casinos. Online casino revenue skyrocketed in June, shattering the previous record, which was set a month ago.
Atlantic City physical casinos saw their revenue decline by more than 65 percent over the three-month shutdown. The casinos were victims of New Jersey’s mandate requiring all businesses where large groups gather to shut down. This included gyms, bars, nightclubs, and restaurants. As the number of cases in New Jersey began to decline, the state gradually began to reopen businesses.
The casino shutdown led to massive layoffs in Atlantic City, which relies heavily on gambling tourism. Each of the nine casinos offered its employees two weeks’ severance pay and extended their health benefits. Atlantic City saw a huge uptick in the number of people seeking unemployment. All the casinos reopened for the July 4th weekend, except the Borgata, which reopened July 26.
While the brick-and-mortar casinos suffered during the shutdown, there was still a bright spot for gamblers. The shutdown led to huge numbers of people gambling online. Online gambling hit another high in June, following record-shattering months in April and May. Compared with April and May, June was the largest online gambling month yet. Online casinos had revenue close to $84.9 million in June, which more than doubles the online casino revenue from June 2019. Sports gambling was huge in June, with gamblers wagering more than $165 million in sports bets.
The April, May, and June numbers represent growth in online gambling by more than 100 percent. Online gambling has brought more than $422 million to the casinos and state revenue streams over the past quarter.
One of the most interesting findings with the June revenue reporting is the rapid growth of online sportsbooks. This was a surprise given the lack of sports in the United States last quarter. Major league teams did not begin playing again until July. This means there were limited opportunities for traditional sports betting. Instead, the revenue in online sportsbooks came from non-U.S. sports. Gamblers were betting on UEFA Europa League soccer, baseball in Asia, and mixed martial arts fights.
Despite the shutdown, the huge increase in sports gambling is a boon for online sportsbooks. eSports and virtual gaming also profited. Both eSports and virtual gaming don’t have to have tournaments in brick-and-mortar establishments. So, while people may be reluctant to place sports bets in person or play at a casino, they can play online. Playing and betting online allows customers to social distance. Experts think the huge growth in online gambling will continue, even though the casinos have reopened. Many people do not yet feel comfortable leaving their homes. Instead, they can place bets and win money from the comfort of their own homes. All the gambling online means that the huge blow to the casino industry was softer because of online gambling. This can only be good news for the New Jersey economy now that the Atlantic City casinos have reopened.
