Two Operators Shut Down New Jersey Sports Betting Services

The landscape of New Jersey sports betting is going to get a little smaller.

Two operators inside The Garden State have announced they will either be shutting down or rolling back their services. The news, while not unexpected, opens the door for a number of questions. 

Chief among them: What, if anything significant, does this mean for sports betting in New Jersey?

Betway is Leaving the New Jersey Sports Betting Market

The Betway Sportsbook announced at the end of July that they will no longer be offering online New Jersey sports betting. Though users will retain access to their accounts and can still use the mobile casino, the sportsbook section is already off limits for those in The Garden State.

Many were caught off-guard by the news. They probably should not have been. Betway Sportsbook shuddered domestic operations across nine states. The real surprise lies in the brevity of their statement. It simply read: “Betway will be closing its sportsbook operations in the U.S.” That’s it.

The CEO Super Group, which owns Betway, has since released a follow up statement. However, it reads like an alternate version of the company’s one-liner. Immediately, it’s not clear why the statement is so short. Perhaps the company doesn’t feel the need to elaborate knowing that exiting the New Jersey sports betting market, along with others, has been in the works for a while. 

So, what exactly prompted BetWay to not only leave New Jersey, but yank itself from the growing list of online sportsbooks in the United States? We’ll get to that shortly.

But first…

SuperBook Leaves the New Jersey Market As Well

Betway isn’t the only online operator vacating the New Jersey sports betting market. SuperBook announced on X (formerly) Twitter that they would be shutting down services in the Garden State. They have not offered an extensive explanation as to why, and their exit took effect almost immediately.

This news came as more of a shock than BetWay’s decision. SuperBook has been a mainstay of New Jersey sports betting online since 2021. Moreover, their rollback proved to be more sudden than others.

Granted, SuperBook isn’t just leaving New Jersey. They have already left nine of the states in which they operated. Most notably, sports betting in Ohio will no longer feature SuperBook. The company has also shuddered operations in Colorado, Arizona, Tennessee, Iowa, Maryland and Virginia. 

Should New Jersey Sports Betting Market be Concerned About Recent Closures?

These developments are, at the very minimum, slightly unsettling for the New Jersey sports betting market. It would be one thing if these were relatively isolated incidents. But they’re not. 

Two other online sportsbooks in New Jersey have shut up shop in recent months. Unibet and Prophet Exchange sportsbooks have both halted their operations inside The Garden State.

To be sure, fewer New Jersey sports betting options doesn’t automatically translate to worse business. But it does mean that active New Jersey sportsbooks will not face as much competition. That, in turn, disincentives operators from offering aggressive sports betting odds or lucrative sports betting bonuses. 

Again: The closure of four sportsbooks doesn’t upend the market entirely. But it is an issue worth monitoring. Especially when the latest New Jersey sports betting handle report shows that the market dropped by nearly 10 percent.

The Garden State is Not Facing This Issue Alone

Make no mistake, the New Jersey sports betting market is not encountering these closures in isolation. As we already noted, plenty of other markets have impacted the number of sportsbooks that have closed up this year. And that incites a larger question: Why is this becoming a trend for online sports betting in the United States? The answers vary. But the primary issue boils down to market share.

A select few sportsbooks make up the vast majority of the betting business in the USA. Most prominently, DraftKings and FanDuel typically represent no less than 75 percent of the sports betting handle in states they operate. New Jersey is (close to) no different. In the most recent monthly report, officials announced that DraftKings and FanDuel were responsible for over 72 percent of the total New Jersey sports betting revenue. And that’s actually a smaller share than we’ve come to expect.

This is the reality with which other operators are trying to grapple. That is why we are seeing so many sportsbooks close their doors. It is hard to keep up with massive online sportsbooks like DraftKings and FanDuel. 

Granted, some operators put up a fight. And we have seen a spirited fight to grab third place in many markets. Take the New Jersey sports betting market. BetMGM remains the third most popular sportsbooks in the Garden State, but bet365 is starting to make a serious push. Experts are also monitoring the development and success of ESPN Bet, which is operated by Penn Entertainment, as they continue to expand their foothold across the country. 

Whether officials, new sportsbooks operators and even consumers should be concerned by the truncated USA sports betting market remains to be seen. It is certainly harder than ever to secure meaningful profit shares. Does that mean it’s impossible? Probably not. But don’t be surprised if New Jersey officials or those in other states start discussing legislation that could increase parity.

Take a look at this list of the top online sportsbooks so you can find one that works for all of your sports betting needs: