The New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement (DGE) reported $1.1 billion in sports betting handle for March, the third consecutive month year-over-year wagering has declined by at least 8%.
Once the leader in post-PASPA handle after overtaking Nevada, the Garden State and its sportsbooks have been knocked down a couple of pegs — first by New York shortly after it launched mobile betting in 2022, and then by Illinois over the past year-plus. Despite New Jersey recording its 25th monthly handle of $1 billion, March’s figure represented a 16.7% decline from 12 months ago.
Some of New Jersey’s dip in handle can be attributed to bettors no longer needing to trek across the Hudson River from Manhattan, but the $3.25 billion wagered through the first quarter of 2025 was down 21.3% compared to the first three months of last year.
Operator revenue in March totaled $71.3 million, a 20.5% falloff as a strong showing by the public in parlay wagering put a dent in winnings. Bettors limited the house to a 9.9% hold on the multi-leg bets compared to 21% and 23.1% in January and February, respectively. The $33 million accrued by sportsbooks on such bets marked a 40.9% decline from March 2024.
The state collected $9 million in receipts as New Jersey joined New York, Illinois, and Pennsylvania as the only states to surpass $600 million in tax revenue during the post-PASPA era.
Is it a blip or a trend?
The push-pull with New York is reflective of both states trending in opposite directions. Handle in terms of dollars in New Jersey has declined $881.1 million this year, but it has skyrocketed by over $1.3 billion in New York. That $2.2 billion swing has also helped the Empire State further the gap between itself and New Jersey for the No. 1 spot post-PASPA to over $3.7 billion.
New Jersey’s 14 mobile sportsbooks generated $1.06 billion in handle, down 17.3% compared to March 2024. They combined for a 6.4% hold, as they claimed $68 million in winnings. Their brick-and-mortar counterparts fared better with a 7.5% hold in keeping $3.3 million of the $44.4 million in accepted wagers.
NCAA chalk was not the worst outcome for the house
Despite all four No. 1 seeds reaching the Final Four of the NCAA men’s tournament, total basketball revenue in March nearly tripled from last year to $20.2 million. The public did fare reasonably well in limiting operators to a 3.8% hold, but handle plunged 15.8% to $528.6 million.
The other big chunk of revenue came from the catch-all “other” category, which includes golf, hockey, soccer, and tennis in New Jersey. Operators neared a 6% hold in reaping $12.5 million in revenue. That, however, was less than half the $27.9 million claimed last year. There also may have been some late 2024 World Series winning tickets cashed as operators paid out $713,000 above the $33 million worth of accepted baseball wagers.
FanDuel paced all mobile sportsbooks with $23.4 million in revenue, but that was down 20.7% compared to last year. DraftKings totaled close to $20 million as its winnings ticked 13.4% higher year-over-year. BetMGM claimed the final podium spot by eclipsing $8 million, its second-best monthly figure since the DGE began breaking out individual operator numbers at the start of last year.
Fanatics Sportsbook continued its fast start to 2025 with $4.4 million in revenue, and its $14.6 million in first-quarter winnings is nearly 65% of the $22.7 million claimed in all of 2024 after launching last May. Caesars rounded out the top five with a combined $3.3 million via tethers to Tropicana and Monmouth Park.
