When it comes to legal sports betting, 2018 has been an extremely busy year for Resorts.
The oldest casino in Atlantic City launched online/mobile sports betting platforms via partnerships with DraftKings and BetStars NJ.
On the retail end, a temporary sportsbook was replaced by the permanent, 5,000-square-foot DraftKings Sportsbook at Resorts.
But there is still more to come.
A Resorts-branded online sportsbook is in the works, said Resorts President and CEO Mark Giannantonio in an interview on Sunday. Timeline? Think January.
“We have been working feverishly to get it launched, hopefully in the next month or so we will be up and running at Resorts Sportsbook online.”
Resorts and SBTech plan from the beginning
Back in July, Resorts reached an agreement with SBTech to provide its sportsbook solution.
SBTech has a strong reputation in the industry that includes winning the In-Play Betting Software award three-straight years from eGaming Review.
The company also provides NJ sports betting tech to Golden Nugget properties in New Jersey and Mississippi. It will also be the tech behind Churchill Downs and its future NJ gambling sites.
SBTech CEO Richard Carter commented on the partnership in a summer news release when the deal was first announced:
“Our strategic partnership with Resorts represents the next stage of our long-planned penetration of the US market. SBTech’s renowned commitment to delivering leading-edge solutions across all channels and intelligent responsible gaming infrastructure will help us develop a sports betting offering that will benefit our partners and promote best practice and the strongest levels of consumer protection.”
Months of NJ sports betting planning
When Resorts opened its temporary sportsbook in August, the press release mentioned the addition of sports betting to ResortsCasino.com.
The launch date of said NJ sports betting site had been a work in progress with one estimate hinting at a September launch.
Once it goes live, the property’s sports betting plate will be full. Resorts would become the first Atlantic City casino to have three online skins and a permanent on-property sportsbook.
The Resorts NJ online casino website currently has a sports tab built in that includes registration information and the FastPick game.
Three is not a crowd for Resorts
New Jersey rules allow for each property to have as many as three different branded online sportsbooks. So a Resorts-branded mobile/online sportsbook would be the third and final for the property.
DraftKings Sportsbook has been live since Aug. 6. BetStars Sportsbook, from the Stars Group, launched Sept. 13.
The DraftKings Sportsbook at Resorts accepted its first bet Nov. 20. Once the Resorts-branded online sportsbook is up and running, the casino will have three strong products for customers.
“It’s pretty amazing,” said Giannantonio. “We have a great partner in PokerStars and the Stars Group. When we solidify ours, we think we are going to have great experiences.”
“By far, we just couldn’t be more happy with DraftKings. They are the market leader in fantasy and it has just translated to sports betting. You see by the results of their numbers online what they’re capable of doing.”
Speaking of numbers, Resorts is the leader of the pack in NJ online sports betting revenue. Resorts Digital (consisting of DraftKings and BetStars) has year-to-date earnings of more than $16.5 million through October.