Legalized sports gambling really kicks off this weekend in New Jersey, as 14 different venues vie for NFL wagers.
Interest is so great that The Post has learned the New York Jets have been huddling with some of these gambling venues about becoming an official sponsor of the team, a source with direct knowledge of the situation said.
A sponsorship could run about $750,000 to $1 million for the year, according to sources.
In recent weeks, the NFL began allowing casino advertising at its stadiums. The Dallas Cowboys last week announced a first-of-its-kind partnership with WinStar World Casino of Oklahoma.
The Giants and Jets have not yet publicly said whether they will accept casino and sports betting-related advertising.
Only four months after the Supreme Court legalized sports betting, no fewer than eight New Jersey racetracks and casinos are expected to be up and running with in-person sports books by the time the 1 p.m. games kick off, and six will offer online sports betting for people in the Garden State.
Monmouth Park and Caesars Entertainment received final approval Friday from the New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement to take online bets.
The Hard Rock Hotel & Casino and Tropicana Atlantic City are still working on getting licensed and may be able to take bets in the near future, a source said.
The New Jersey law allows only racetracks and casinos to be able to offer sports betting. Both FanDuel And DraftKings have affiliations allowing them to offer online wagering to those in the state. The Meadowlands, while DraftKings has aligned with Resorts Casino Hotel.
Projections are that the Garden State will surpass Nevada in sports wagering revenue by 2021, according to Chris Grove, managing director at gaming analyst Eilers & Krejcik.
By that year, New Jersey sports books will be taking in $3.4 billion in sporting wagering revenue, with profits estimated at $442 million, according to Grove.
The $3.4 billion is roughly the same as the money that is presently bet on New Jersey state lottery tickets.
“In Nevada, about half of the total handle in the local’s market is bet through mobile devices,” Grove said. “We expect New Jersey to fall around a similar number.”
New Jersey taxes are 9.75 percent on brick-and-mortar bet profits, and 14.25 percent for online wagers.
New Jersey is the state with the largest population taking sports bets this football season. Next season, Connecticut, Oregon and Pennsylvania may be ready for action.
New York may not go live, at least for internet sports betting, until 2021, Grove said.
In the first two months, New Jersey gamblers have bet $55 million on sports, but that number is expected to rise substantially in September with the growing number of bookmakers and start of football season.
“The over/under for September is $500 million,” said a sports book executive who requested anonymity.
Overall, betting on sports nationally is expected to grow from $3.5 billion today, which is mostly bet illegally, to $16 billion when almost all states, as expected, legalize it, Grove said.
“Most people don’t like to break the law, using offshore sports books feels risky, and when you have major companies and pro sports teams aggressively marketing sports betting, a lot more people will get interested,” Grove said.
The New York Jets declined comment.
https://nypost.com/2018/09/09/new-york-jets-are-trying-to-recruit-a-gambling-venue-sponsor/