The August sports betting numbers are in for the state of New Jersey, and it was a positive month for the state. The total sports betting handle was $664.7 million, which represented a jump of nearly 15 percent from July.
Even though the total handle increased month-over-month, the state of New Jersey saw a slight dip in the total sports betting revenue. For August, New Jersey sportsbooks brought in $52 million, which was down from $55 million in July.
There are still a number of states that have yet to report on the August sports betting numbers, but New Jersey is expected to be in the lead. This state is now the clear sports betting leader in the US, and it could start to produce record-setting numbers soon.
Slight Dip Year Over Year
Even though the month of August produced some positive numbers in 2021, it was still a slight dip from what took place a year ago. 2020 was a year that was marked with COVID-19, and August represented a huge boom in live sporting events.
The August 2020 sports betting handle was $667.9 million, which was less than one percent higher than 2021. August 2020 started a trend of massive growth in New Jersey, and the same thing could be true in 2021.
New Jersey nearly hit the $1 billion mark in total handle in December 2020, and the state could be on a path to challenge that record this season.
NFL Week 1 Provides Boost
The 2021 NFL season kicked off on Thursday, September 9, and this was a date that many states were looking forward to. Sports betting was slow over the summer, but things always seem to ramp up when the professional football games begin.
GeoComply is a geolocation service that works for most states throughout the US, and it tracks the amount of sports betting action that takes place. According to a report, the entire US market saw an increase of more than 126 percent during Week 1 of the 2021 season compared to 2020.
Also included in this report was a state-by-state breakdown, and New Jersey had the most “pings” from online sports bettors. The official September sports betting numbers won’t be unveiled until mid-October, but it could be a record-setting month for the state.
Still No Threat From New York
At some point, New Jersey is going to face some real competition from the state of New York, but that just hasn’t been the case up to this point. Despite being a much bigger state, New York continues to produce much smaller sports betting numbers than its neighbor across the Hudson River.
Mobile sports betting in New York has been approved, but there is no clear timetable as to when that form of betting will launch. Even when New York does allow for statewide mobile betting, the market still won’t be as big as it is in New Jersey.
Until New York is able to make some changes to its current law, New Jersey will continue to put up some very impressive sports betting numbers.
