Michigan set to overtake New Jersey as the biggest gambling state

New Jersey has been the biggest player in the states when it comes to gambling. As an early adopter of gambler-friendly legislation, it set its stall and welcomed online and offline gambling alike. Since 2013 this is the state that has seen gambling increase in popularity. The fact that New Jersey has been there from the start means it is the state that gamblers can trust and operators are drawn to this ever-expanding scene. However, it now appears that we have another state hot on New Jersey’s heels in the form of Michigan. Let´s take a look at New Jersey vs Michigan, gambling wise. 

Some eight years late to the party, Michigan didn’t legalize gambling until January 2021. While the iGaming and sports betting scenes may well still be in their infancy, the truth is that they are growing at an exponential rate. Yes, New Jersey certainly set the tone for the states and it showed the benefits that the iGaming scene could bring. With the amount of tax revenue being generated, it can come as no surprise that other states were wanting their slice of the pie. It’s just that no one foresaw Michigan’s scene taking off quite as well as it did.

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Michigan vs New Jersey

New Jersey vs. Michigan 2022

The online side of gambling is something that is thriving in Michigan right now. With monthly state-wide revenue topping $130 million, this is a state that has shown impressive growth and its residents have displayed a healthy appetite for what is on offer.

Certainly in New Jersey, there’s no denying that online gambling remains as popular as ever. This is the state that provided an example to the US as a whole and there is no doubt that it continues to be a major force, although it may well be slipping from the top spot.

When looking at the first half of 2022, the figures clearly show that New Jersey is out there in the lead. During the first six months, its online gambling and poker sites raked in a substantial $814 million. During the same period, Michigan was also experiencing somewhat of a boom with its revenue reaching $757 million.

There will be those who argue that Michigan was bound to be close to New Jersey’s figures purely because it is home to 1 million more people. While these numbers can’t be ignored nor can the fact that the gambling industry has only been operating for just over a year. New Jersey has had nine years to establish itself and build its momentum. What Michigan has achieved in such a short timescale is nothing short of phenomenal.

The top earners – Michigan vs New Jersey 

It’s interesting to stop and take a look at the operators that are generating the revenue in both New Jersey and Michigan. When it comes to online casino gaming the biggest operator, in both states, is BetMGM. The differences come when you look at the second, third and fourth:

New Jersey 

  • Second place – Caesars
  • Third place – DraftKings
  • Fourth place – FanDuel

Michigan 

  • Second place – BetRivers
  • Third place – Caesars
  • Fourth place – DraftKings

While looking at operators, it’s interesting to note that Michigan actually has more license holders than New Jersey. In New Jersey, eight operators are licensed to operate online. Over in Michigan, there are both tribal and commercial operators so this number is far surpassed.

The increase in choice may well be behind Michigan’s impressive performance. It allows players to experience a variety of online casinos and to try a broader range of games. That being said, it appears that the top operators, that generate the most revenue, are pretty much the same across both states.

Boosted by sports betting

Something else that has had a significant impact on the revenue generated in Michigan is the sports betting scene. With year-on-year growth, this sector managed to bring in an impressive $24.9 million in taxes with iGaming accounting for $24.1 million and $815,000 coming from sports betting taxes and fees.

July has seen a dip in revenue but this isn’t something that Michigan should be overly concerned about. The same dip is experienced across the US as major sporting leagues take a summer break meaning that there are fewer markets to bet on.

What are people spending on in Michigan?

We know that Michigan’s gambling scene has exploded, but what are people actually gambling on? Well, official figures don’t give a complete breakdown but what we do know is that online gaming brings in eight times more than sports betting and over 85 times more than what is generated by fantasy sports.

It’s a reasonable assumption that slots will be behind the majority of revenue that’s being raised. These are likely to be followed closely by the likes of blackjack and roulette. It’s safe to say that poker isn’t the driving force in the state: with PokerStars Michigan peaking at 320 players in any 24-hour period, that’s just not enough to bring in some $100 million in revenue.

We’ve already seen that the biggest earning operator in the state is BetMGM. This online casino generated around $47 million and is bursting at the seams with around 300 slots to choose from. The number of slots is more than all of the other casino games combined. That really does back up the assumption that money is being spent on slots more than any other casino game.

Michigan vs New Jersey – When will Michigan surpass New Jersey?

There’s no getting away from the fact that Michigan’s gambling scene has grown at a rate never witnessed before. However, that doesn’t mean that it’s easy to give a specific date when it will overtake New Jersey and become the top performing state.

A lot depends on what happens as we emerge from the summer months. The downturn experienced now is to be expected but what happens next is the real test. Let’s remember that we also have a World cup approaching and this could be the ideal opportunity to attract new customers to have a flutter. 

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Michigan vs New Jersey