A rare September nor’easter that battered shorelines from the Carolinas to New England disrupted play in Atlantic City last month.
On Monday (Oct. 19), the New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement (DGE) published its September revenue statistics showing that in-person casino win cooled 1.3% to $227.8 million. The nine casinos won $177.9 million from slot machines and $49.9 million from table games.
While slot revenue rose 4.6%, revenue from table games dropped nearly 18%. James Plousis, chair of the New Jersey Casino Control Commission, suggested the figures show “visitation maintained its momentum” during the month, attributing the decline in in-person gaming revenue to players experiencing “better luck at table games.”
Casinos’ quarterly profit reports, which include hotel occupancy data, will help clarify whether table players simply got lucky or whether higher slot holds and an overall decline in visitation drove the September results.
Borgata and Hard Rock, the top two casinos in Atlantic City in terms of revenue, saw gross gaming revenue (GGR) fall 11.3% and 4.3%. Five of the casinos reported higher in-person revenue, including Ocean.
September Headwinds
Atlantic City was dealt a difficult hand in September when a rare nor’easter hit the New Jersey beach town over the Sept. 25 weekend.
On Saturday (Sept. 26), officials said the city experienced its highest water levels since Hurricane Sandy in 2012. Dangerous winds accompanying the heavy rainfall kept many motorists at home, which played into iGaming’s hands.
The DGE filing showed that online casinos generated GGR of $274.8 million, up 13% from September 2025, a difference of nearly $31.7 million. FanDuel ($57.8 million) and DraftKings ($53.3 million) accounted for over $111 million of the iGaming win.
GGR from online gaming exceeded $2.4 billion in the first nine months of the year, earlier than any other year on record. September was iGaming’s third-best month ever.
Like last year, it is anticipated that internet gaming win will continue exceeding in-person casino win during Atlantic City’s shoulder season,” Plousis said.
With year-to-date iGaming GGR of $541.1 million, FanDuel held a 22.5% market share of New Jersey’s online casino market. DraftKings was next at 17.5%.
FanDuel’s online casino operates in New Jersey through a partnership with Golden Nugget. DraftKings’ iGaming platform is tethered through Resorts.
Sports Betting Check-In
September was another bad month for New Jersey oddsmakers.
Revenue from sports betting dropped 14.3% to $77 million, a net loss of $12.8 million. Through September, New Jersey sportsbook revenue was 6.3% lower at $748.3 million.
New Jersey sports bettors are betting less, at least through licensed sportsbooks. Year-to-date handle is 4.1% lower at $8.3 billion.
The emergence of sports event contracts traded on prediction markets has likely poached some play from licensed sportsbooks.
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