Hard Rock Sports & Casino in New Jersey will be reimagined as Hard Rock Bet later this year.
The Garden State makeover was part of an announcement Monday from Hard Rock Digital that its online sportsbook product in five states was changing its name. Hard Rock Bet is now live in Arizona, Indiana, Ohio, Tennessee and Virginia.
Hard Rock has been part of the NJ online casinos industry since 2018. The company’s NJ online sportsbook has been available since 2019. The branded online casino and sportsbook operates under Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Atlantic City‘s gaming license.
Hard Rock rebranding NJ online casino, NJ sportsbook
The company says the move is part of a transition toward using in-house proprietary technology. According to executives, Hard Rock Bet will have a new loyalty program and a new feature called Flex Parlay, explained here:
Bit more color here…
Flex Parlay was born out of a product and tech team hackathon a few months back. This new bet allows you to place a parlay but instead of needing to win all legs to win, you can pick the number of selections or more you think will win. https://t.co/UXjU0Dcdi4 pic.twitter.com/wFRnSWcdme
— Mike Primeaux (@primxo) July 17, 2023
Hard Rock looks to become more competitive in NJ
By bringing these tech capabilities in-house, Hard Rock joins the ranks of other major US sportsbooks such as DraftKings, FanDuel and Caesars, which have recently made similar moves to increase their competitiveness and gain better control over their offerings.
These changes have led to varying outcomes across the industry, with some operators reporting higher holds and increased parlay revenue, while others have struggled to compete.
The digital component of the Hard Rock NJ footprint has not yet matched the performance of its land-based counterpart.
Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Atlantic City opened in June 2018. It trails only Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa in reported land-based gambling revenue since that time. By comparison, Hard Rock AC’s online revenue reports for internet casino and sports betting are near the bottom of NJ’s legal online gambling market.
There are murmurs of a potential expansion to Florida, pending a recent decision from the second-highest court in the country. However, the rebranding announcement did not specifically address this prospective move to the Sunshine State.
NOTE: (07/20/2023 / 11:00 a.m. EST) This story was updated from its original version with a more accurate description of the Hard Rock Bet rollout.
