Those wondering if 2022 would be the year NJ online casinos would report their first $150-million month, the answer is a resounding yes. The record-breaking news was announced earlier this week when the New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement released its December report.
December’s NJ online casino revenue came in at $151.5 million. This reflects a growth of 13.7% from the same period in 2021 ($133.2 million). The result also shatters the previous all-time monthly mark of $147.2 million set two months prior.
With the December results added to the 12-month totals, NJ online casinos and their land-based partners earned $1.66 billion for 2022. That’s a 21.6% increase compared to the $1.37 billion earned one year prior.
The Garden State’s grand total (dating back to November 2013 Internet gaming launch) now stands $5.5 billion and counting.
Here is a closer look at some of the highlights from the December NJ gambling results.
Monthly NJ gambling $40 million club
For the first time in NJ gambling history, there were license holders to report more than $40 million in NJ online gambling revenue during the same month.
Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa, led by BetMGM and Borgata online casinos, set the pace with $43.7 million, up 18% ($37 million) from the same period last year. However, this was not the Borgata’s top month of the year as November’s revenue came in at $44.3 million.
The MGM-operated Borgata continues to be the top dog among Atlantic City casino license holders. The Marina District property and its online partners earned nearly a half-billion ($496.3 million) for they year. This included eight-straight months of at least $40.5 million.
Resorts Digital (led by DraftKings, Barstool and Resorts online casinos) reported an all-time record month with $40.4 million, up 22.7% from the same month last year ($32.9 million). The license holder is the online division of Resorts Atlantic City. The full year total came in at $393.3 million.
Golden Nugget Atlantic City, which includes BetRivers, FanDuel and Golden Nugget online casino, reported $37.8 million for December (up 4.9% from December 2021). In terms of 2022 NJ gambling revenue totals, Golden Nugget finished in the No. 2 spot with $431.7 million.
NJ online casino revenue breakdown
Here is a breakdown of the December NJ online casino revenue results by AC casino license.
| Licensee | Total Revenue | Slots & Tables | Poker | Taxes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bally's Atlantic City | $5,218,793 | $5,218,793 | $ - | $776,529 |
| Borgata | $43,706,888 | $42,909,788 | $797,100 | $6,578,467 |
| Caesars Atlantic City | $9,566,032 | $8,810,572 | $755,460 | $1,435,947 |
| Golden Nugget Atlantic City | $37,786,899 | $37,786,899 | $ - | $5,668,692 |
| Hard Rock Atlantic City | $5,333,620 | $5,333,620 | $ - | $800,043 |
| Ocean | $3,520,633 | $3,520,633 | $ - | $545,243 |
| Resorts Atlantic City | $40,397,270 | $39,777,556 | $619,714 | $6,059,591 |
| Tropicana Atlantic City | $5,925,358 | $5,925,358 | $ - | $888,804 |
| Total | $151,455,493 | $149,283,219 | $2,172,274 | $22,753,316 |
Bally Atlantic City, Ocean Casino Resort biggest percentage gainers
The NJ online casinos operating under the Bally’s Atlantic City and Ocean Casino Resort licenses are not market-leading brands. At the same time, it’s hard ignoring the year-over-year percentage growth of these two license holders.
This time last year, Bally’s AC was barely a player in the NJ Internet gaming industry. PointsBet Casino was the lone brand operating under its license.
Now, thanks to the early 2022 launch of Bally Casino and Virgin Casino moving over from the Tropicana Atlantic City license, Bally’s is starting to see the positive results. While the $5.2 million in December revenue was the second lowest among the eight license holders, the year-over-year growth from December 2021 was up an eye-opening 1407.4%. Bally’s 2021 December total was a measly $346,218.
The full year-over-year performance was even stronger as Bally’s earned $41.8 million for 2022 compared to the $1.67 million earned during the previous year. Yes, Bally’s and its online partners earned more in December than the entire previous year. That’s good enough for a 2,405% increase.
Ocean Casino Resort the other license holder that showed tremendous growth last year. Their December Internet gaming win of $3.52 million showed a 125% growth ($1.6 million) from December 2021. Ocean is still sitting at the bottom of the Internet gaming revenue pack, but the online business is clearing growing. PlayStar Casino launched under the Ocean license during the second half of last year.
However, since New Jersey does not break down the results by brand, it’s hard to say which of the four skins were the biggest contributors. Ocean, BetParx and Tipico casinos are the others. They reported $29.8 million in combined 2022 revenue, up 86.6% from the previous year.
NJ online casinos big contributors to NJ’s $5.2 billion year
The NJ online gambling market is one segment in the much bigger New Jersey revenue picture. The total gaming revenue for 2022 came in at $5.2 billion, and it includes the $1.66 billion NJ online casino revenue.
Atlantic City land-based casino revenue led the way with $2.8 billion. That number includes a solid December performance of $215.6 million. This is noteworthy because it marks their strongest December in 10 years.
NJ sports betting revenue accounted for the other $762.9 million. NJ sportsbook closed out 2022 with $87.7 million in December NJ sports betting revenue.
Time will tell if this momentum extends into 2023.
