Many gamblers in the United States have seen their casinos shut their doors due to the coronavirus pandemic. Nevada has closed its casinos and New Jersey recently did the same with an order from Governor Phil Murphy. The Meadowlands Racetrack and Freehold Raceway are both closed, and Monmouth Park had a reopening date of May 2 but has pushed that back a few weeks.
With the health emergency, many in the U.S. are dealing with social distancing and many have also started working from home if possible. The use of the internet has spiked and that may be an issue when it comes to the capacity of the networks. Also surging is the use streaming services such as Netflix and Disney+, while there has been a 75% jump in video gaming activity.
New Jersey has legal sports betting online, although residents do not have many options with leagues and events being canceled or postponed. The NHL, NBA, MLS, and MLB are on indefinite suspension, but bettors can still wager on MMA fights, a few overseas soccer leagues and various futures markets.
There are many gamblers that are not fond of the lottery or may want to travel to visit retailers with the current health issue. Sportsbooks took a big financial hit when the NCAA basketball tournament, aka March Madness, was canceled. Just like other businesses that are heading for an economic hit, casino operators have looked to Congress to get emergency financial aid. Will the New Jersey online casinos be able to help fill the void? That is a big question, but it is better than nothing.
In a recent press conference, Governor Murphy stated, “The good news is online gaming will continue, the bad news is there’s not much to wager on.”
One thing residents of New Jersey have going for them is their state, along with Delaware, began to offer online casino gambling and online poker gambling in 2013.
In New Jersey, there are 32 online casinos that offer legal wagering. 10 of them are operated by Borgata, which is owned by MGM, and that includes Pala Casino, Borgata Casino, and one of the leading online poker websites in PartyPoker.
Caesars Entertainment has six gaming websites with partners like 888Casino and WSOP. There is a WSOP online circuit event, which began March 14 and runs until March 31. Players in those poker tournaments can play against other competitors from New Jersey, Delaware, and Nevada for the same rings that are given out to winners of WSOP circuit events that are held at land-based live tournaments.
Golden Nuggets has its name on five gaming sites with its brand with SugarHouse and BetAmerica being two of them.
Resorts has four gaming options such as DraftKings, which is not only one of the more popular New Jersey sportsbooks but also has a casino as well. They also have PokerStars and Mohegan Sun under their umbrella as well.
Hard Rock offers three sites including Bet365 and Ocean Resort has two sites with Parx Casino being the most popular. Tropicana has two offerings in their own Tropicana Casino as well as Virgin Casino.
The coronavirus issue has hit the nation hard and while New Jersey is no exception there is still gaming available online.