It appears MGM Resorts International and its Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa are now part of the New Jersey online and mobile sportsbook market.
In early August, MGM Resorts International Chairman and CEO Jim Murren said the company planned to launch a New Jersey mobile sports betting product by the end of the week.
Now, almost three weeks later, playMGM soft-launched its NJ mobile sportsbook app, joining DraftKings Sportsbook in the new online sports betting market.
Murren was speaking at a July 31 New York City press conference announcing MGM had become the official gaming partner of the NBA and WNBA at the time.
The NJ playMGM sports betting app
Murren was talking about MGM’s sports betting operations in Las Vegas and Atlantic City when he may have unwittingly revealed its playMGM sports betting app is ready to launch in the Garden State:
“Fortunately we have a running start here, because we operate the largest sports betting operation in Las Vegas with our 10 resorts. We hub out of the Mirage property, but as you know, we own properties up and down the Las Vegas Boulevard. And our playMGM app has been active for quite some time and is already quite popular.
“Closer to home here, of course we own Borgata, and at the end of this week, we’ll be taking mobile bets from Borgata and playMGM in New Jersey.”
Then there’s the NJ sports betting law
Recall that NJ sports betting was legalized at racetracks and casinos on June 11.
The law allows licensed sportsbooks to launch online and mobile sports betting products 30 days after it passed. However, none have.
In fact, Murren’s comments are the first from any casino or racetrack operator indicating it has an online or mobile NJ sports betting product ready to launch.
The state’s first sportsbooks
The Monmouth Park Sports Book by William Hill at the Oceanport track was the first to take a legal bet in the state, launching on June 14.
However, the converted Race & Sports Book at Borgata opened just a few hours later, becoming the first Atlantic City casino to get in on the action.
At the time, Borgata President and CEO Marcus Glover said the organization had plans in the final stages of design to make significant additions to complement the existing facilities. Details and a timeline for that project have not yet been released.
Borgata’s Race & Sports Book offers betting lines and odds directly from MGM Resorts in Las Vegas.
There’s an app for that
These same odds are offered on the very popular playMGM mobile sports betting app operating on an IGT software platform in Nevada. It uses geolocation software and age verification to ensure the legality of all mobile bets.
MGM will likely launch a version of the same app in New Jersey.
The app offers wagers on a variety of sports betting formats, including:
- Futures
- Live wagers
- Moneylines
- Parlays
- Point spreads
- Propositions
- Teasers
Earlier this week, MGM also announced it had struck a deal with Boyd Gaming to take its online gambling and sports betting products nationwide.
It’s likely that MGM’s announcement will spur Caesars, Golden Nugget and other potential NJ sports betting operators to join the online wagering market soon.
The MGM edge in sports betting
At Tuesday’s press conference, Murren did not say being first to launch mobile sports betting in New Jersey would give MGM an edge over the competition.
Instead, he said the MGM name will get that job done:
“I think that the experienced gaming customer, and even the novice, is really going to gravitate toward integrity, trust, branding, information. And I think this provides us a tremendous advantage over my competitors.”