Part 1: Data review
surprisingly eclectic mix of sports
bet on once the big game has come
to an end.
This data would appear to prove
two points: first, in-play betting is as
popular as it is in Europe and Asia.
And second, when it comes to in-play
outside of the major US sports, the
top three sports in the rest of the
world assert themselves. This data
has implications not only for the
operators in understanding what type
of offering they need to be putting in
front of punters, but also for the big
leagues when it comes to the debate
about data and integrity fees. The
arguments put forward by the US
leagues lose some of their force when
the handle displays such eclecticism.
completely eclipsed master operator
Resorts Casino’s other big name
brand, BetStars, which (apparently for
a variety of reasons around product
and even apparently brand name) has
yet to truly enter the market.
A more general point is that with
the Paddy Power Betfair-owned
FanDuel sitting clearly in second
place with nearly 38% of the market,
the ex-DFS market leaders have,
between them, proved that their
customers were indeed the sports
bettors waiting to happen that they
claimed they were.
However, while both DraftKings
and FanDuel will be celebrating
their successful debuts in sports
betting (not just in New Jersey but
also elsewhere), they will also be
aware that in the case of many of
their future competitors, the battle
has yet to truly start. As mentioned,
the Stars Group is yet to properly
activate its (presumably) equally
voluminous customer lists (albeit
from its poker days).
Others are also yet to properly
make their entrance. Hard Rock
has only just launched; the Caesars
offerings are similarly yet to break
The competitive picture
If ever a brand has proved old adages
about first-mover advantage it is
DraftKings. Having been first out of
the blocks, the company has proved
the value of having an extensive
customer list from its previous DFS-
only existence and has, as of January,
grabbed almost half of the total
market share (See Chart 6).
In the process, it has almost
Chart 6: New Jersey sports betting market shares
by master operator as of Jan 19
0.60%
cover; the MGM/GVC interactive
joint venture ROAR is as yet only
a purr; and bet365, which has an
agreement to launch under the Hard
Rock operator licence, is also yet to
name a date for market entry.
William Hill, however, is making
more of a fist of things via its
operations at Monmouth Park (where
it shares the spoils with SugarHouse),
Oceans Resort and Tropicana.
According to William Hill’s own
estimates from its recent full year
results, it has a circa 8% market share.
Of the newer offerings coming to
market, February saw online gaming
market leader Golden Nugget (see
later in this report) make its own
entry into the market via a launch
with backend provider SBTech. Given
Golden Nugget’s success in gaming,
it would not be a surprise to see the
business drive sports betting further
forward while also potentially taking
market share from the leaders.
Still, with DraftKings setting the
pace not only in terms of timing but
also in terms of the product offering,
it would be a brave punter who
bet against it maintaining market
leadership in the months and years
Chart 7: New Jersey gaming revenue by year
2013-2018
400 300
350 262.5
300 225
250 187.5
200 150
150 112.5
100 75
7.61%
8.31%
43.94%
Operator share
37.64%
50
1.90%
37.5
0
0
2013
Monmouth Park
Ocean Resort
Resorts Casino
Source: xxxxxxxxx
Meadowlands
Tropicana
Ballys AC
2014
Total casino revenue
2015
2016
Total poker revenue
2017
2018
Total igaming
Source: NJDGE
New Jersey: data and lessons from the first five years of the US’ leading digital market
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