Borgata dislodges Golden Nugget from online gaming top spot in New Jersey
Golden Nugget led market for 51 consecutive months before losing crown in what was a record month for total revenue in the Garden State
Borgata raced past long-time leader Golden Nugget in New Jersey’s online gaming market during March as its revenue surged 40% month on month to $36.2m, according to figures released by the Division of Gaming Enforcement.
Golden Nugget, which had held the lead for more than four years, managed to report its own record of $31.8m – up 14% on February – but it wasn’t enough to prevent Borgata trouncing the state’s seven online licensees.
The brands on the Borgata interactive license include BetMGM and Borgata Casino, while Golden Nugget’s online license features Golden Nugget, Betfair Casino, PlaySugarHouse and BetAmerica.
March’s results mean Borgata grabbed a 31.8% slice of the pie, ahead of Golden Nugget on almost 28% and Resorts (mainly DraftKings) with nearly a 19% share.
At certain points over the past four years, Golden Nugget held almost a three-to-one lead over Borgata and it appeared to industry observers this commanding position was unassailable.
Yet Borgata had been eating into Golden Nugget’s dominance for months now and it seemed only a matter a time before the operator would steal the crown due to the momentum BetMGM – the MGM Resorts and Entain JV – has gained of late.
Across the US, and including sports betting, BetMGM recorded Q1 revenue of $163m, which equates to 90% of revenue earned throughout the entirety of full-year 2020. This was a 430% increase year on year.
However, Borgata still has some way to go to eclipse its main rival’s total igaming revenue in New Jersey since the market launched in late 2013. Thus far, Golden Nugget’s total revenue stands at almost $850m, followed by Borgata (just over $600m) and Resorts (almost $500m).
New Jersey achieved a record month for online gaming revenue, which includes casino and poker, in March with $113.7m. This is only the second time ever it has hit nine figures after the $103.8m posted in January.
Casino continues to dominate the product mix with 97.6% of total revenue and poker taking the remaining 2.4% sliver.
When it came to sports betting, handle came in at just shy of $860m, which was an increase on February’s $743m but down on the $959m achieved in January.
Betting revenue for March was $60.8m, representing a hold of 7%.
2021 Igaming revenue per New Jersey license