Caesars Entertainment entered Atlantic City’s sports betting market last week with the opening of two temporary sports book at Bally’s and Harrah’s casinos respectively.
The sports book opened at Bally’s in temporary space in its Wild Wild West Casino on Monday. The temporary sports book is designed to accommodate players from the neighboring Caesars Atlantic City casino as well. A second temporary sports book was opened at Harrah’s Atlantic City on Wednesday.
None of the four Atlantic City casinos that now offer a sports book—including Borgata and the newly opened Ocean Resort—have finished construction on their permanent facilities and all are operating in temporary space.
Kevin Ortzman regional president for Caesars Entertainment Corp., said that Caesars experience with Nevada sports books gave them an advantage in moving quickly to begin sports betting in Atlantic City, which allows them to attract new customers.
“We have found that the majority of sports bettors are not the same as our core gamers,” he said. “So, this brings a whole new customer to Atlantic City.”
At the Harrah’s ceremony, Ortzman said the first two days of sports betting at Bally’s had “met our expectations,” but would not say how much in bets it had taken in.
The 8,190-square-foot temporary sports book at Bally’s features 30 leather chairs in front of three large television screens and five smaller screens. Previously closed cashier windows located diagonally across from the seating and viewing area serve as sports wagering windows.
The sports book at Harrah’s features 32 leather chairs, five screens and six high-top tables in a lounge area just off the casino floor.
New Jersey now has six operating sports books that have opened since it won its U.S. Supreme Court challenge of a federal ban on sports betting in May. The Meadowlands Racetrack and Monmouth Park Racetrack in Oceanport NJ have also opened sports books.
David L. Rebuck, director of the state Division of Gaming Enforcement, said the rollout has been moving smoothly since regulators have been preparing for sports betting since 2013 when the state first began challenging the federal ban.
“We’ve been researching best models for sports wagering and developing the New Jersey model for years,” he told the AP. “So, when the law was finally passed by the legislature and signed by the governor back in June, we were light years ahead of the industry in being ready for New Jersey.”
New Jersey’s sports betting law does allow for online betting, but so far, no site has launched.
Mark Frissora, president and CEO of Caesars Entertainment, said the company plans to “quickly introduce” mobile and online sports betting in New Jersey.
“The recent Supreme Court ruling allows us to expand our sports betting digital and mobile offerings into new markets,” Frissora said in a press release. “We recognize that our customers expect exciting new experiences, which is why we will continue to offer new products through our mobile and digital platforms and inside our properties.”
Caesars Entertainment has partnered with Scientific Games, a Las Vegas-based lottery and gambling service provider to offer sports betting.
“With OpenBet, our powerful and robust sports book platform, Caesars will have a truly open platform and end-to-end product suite that delivers the very best and flexible solutions and has proven success managing the largest share of the world’s online bets, more than 2 billion online bets annually,” said Barry Cottle, president and CEO at Scientific Games in a press release. “Our SG Digital team is excited to help Caesars stay ahead of the game, as they work to expand their sports betting, digital and mobile offerings into newly regulated markets.”
Caesars also announced it plans to open sports books at its Gulf Coast and Tunica properties in Mississippi.
Meanwhile, several sports betting operators are moving to offer online betting in the state.
DraftKings—the daily fantasy sports site partnered with Resorts Atlantic City to offer sports betting—has opened registration for its mobile sports betting app in New Jersey and began an invitation-only trial period. The soft-launch was expected to end Sunday, August 5 after which the site will go fully live.
The company said this real-money test period was the last step in receiving regulatory approval from the state Division of Gaming Enforcement. The division has approved the testing period.
DraftKings appears to moving towards launching online sports betting before opening a retail space at Resorts.
“I think the opportunity for innovation is just massive with mobile,” Jason Robins, CEO of DraftKings, told ESPN. “Not to say that you can’t innovate on the retail side, but it’s quite literally a limited space. Mobile, you can do anything with. There is no limit to where I think this is going to go, with integrations of streaming … I think eventually it integrates with voice assistance in the home, smart TVs. The opportunities really are endless as technology advances.”
DraftKings has partnered with Malta-based sports betting provider Kambi to help oversee oddsmaking, trading and risk management. DraftKings also announced the hiring of Jamie Shea as its head of sportsbook digital, the report said.
Resorts also announced and extension of its online partnership with the Stars Group to include online and mobile sports wagering through the BetStars brand. The Stars Group already offers online casino and poker through its PokerStars brand in New Jersey.
“We believe the Stars Group is uniquely qualified with the experience and insight needed to make sports betting a success in New Jersey,” said Matt Primeaux, a senior vice president at the Stars Group. “We have successfully launched the BetStars brand in many European regulated markets, and we have invested heavily to create a premier global offering.”
The Stars Group site has yet to be approved by state regulators, but Resorts officials expected approval.
“We’re excited to double down on our already successful partnership with the Stars Group, which owns leading sports books globally and has always been known and respected for their advanced technology, superior customer experience and cutting-edge security safeguards,” said Mark Giannantonio, president and CEO of Resorts Casino Hotel, in a press statement announcing the deal.
Also, MGM CEO Jim Murren said earlier in the week that the Borgata in Atlantic City—the first casino to offer sports betting—will begin its own testing for online betting in coming days, but no official launch date has been set, ESPN reported.
