Wagering on Esports is the fastest growing element of the sports betting industry and New Jersey lawmakers are taking notice of that fact.
“Esports are becoming more popular and represent a big opportunity for New Jersey’s casinos and racetracks,” Republican Assemblyman Don Guardian told njassemblygop.com. As a former mayor of Atlantic City, Guardian succinctly understands the value that Esports can add to the state’s sports betting market.
New Jersey is among 18 US states that offer legal and regulated wagering on Esports. For example, at Bet365 there are markets on such Esports as Valorant, League of Legends, CounterStrike: Global Offensive and Call of Duty.
To that end, Guardian has introduced a bill that would expand Esports betting opportunities in the Garden State. Guardian’s bill (A2172) would amend the state’s sports betting laws to allow licensed sports wagering operators to add up to two more individually-branded websites with accompanying mobile applications for Esports-only bets. The sites and apps wouldn’t count toward the current limit of three sports betting skins per licensee.
Guardian’s bill would also allow Esports competitors participating in an event to place a bet on themselves or their team. This element of the bill seems both odd and even unsettling. Such an option is forbidden in all mainstream sports.
Another unique twist to the bill is that if a New Jersey land-based casino were to play host to a major Esports competition, that casino’s Esports licensee would be able to apply for exclusive rights to offering wagering on that event to New Jersey sports bettors via legal sports betting sites in NJ.
“Esports have entertainment appeal with a global viewership of 665 million people,” Guardian explained. “Now, it is leveraging the success of online gambling and the popularity of sports betting to become the future of gaming.”
Guardian’s bill has already been passed by the state Assembly Tourism, Gaming and the Arts Committee. In the next step of the process toward ultimately being passed into law, the bill is now being considered by the Assembly Oversight, Reform and Federal Relations Committee. There is also a companion bill in front of the New Jersey State Senate.
Is There A Demand For Expanded Esports Betting In New Jersey?
Esports are competitive organized video gaming events usually involving multiple players online or in a physical location.
Guardian’s bill raises another question and that’s whether there is a hue and cry for any increase in wagering on Esports.
New Jersey sports betting history suggests the answer to this question is a resounding no.
Vie.gg, an all-Esports sports betting site launched in April of 2022 by the Esports Entertainment Group, was shuttered eight months later. Some months the site averaged less than $1000 in wagers.
A 2023 study conducted by the Rutgers Center For Gambling Studies discovered that just 11% of respondents had ever placed a bet on an Esports event.
It could be that Esports is indeed the future of online sports betting. It’s also entirely possible that the future is not now.
Time will tell.
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