WSOP Holds Smallest Share of NJ Online Poker Market in Five Years

Revenue data shows PokerStars NJ has been peeling market share from WSOP since the year started, after the Flutter brand combined its player pools in Michigan and New Jersey.
WSOP Holds Smallest Share of NJ Online Poker Market in Five Years
By
May 22, 2023

After being on top of the market for real money online poker in New Jersey for much of the past five years, WSOP NJ finds itself in an unusual position: in last place and falling fast.

That’s the picture painted by revenue data supplied by the New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement (NJDGE), which reported that the entire online poker vertical in the Garden State had revenue of $2.3 million in April. That marked a 7.4% decrease month-to-month ($2.5 million), but the market was up 2.3% year-over-year (just under $2.3 million).

PokerStars NJ led WSOP and its rivals on the BetMGM Poker Network for a fourth consecutive month in revenue. That’s no surprise, considering the operator combined its player pool in New Jersey with its counterpart in Michigan on January 1.

Shared liquidity continues to fuel a resurgent PokerStars in the Garden State — it was tops for revenue and market share every month from April 2016 to April 2018, a 25-month run.

NJDGE data show that since January of this year, PokerStars has been peeling away market share from WSOP. The former held just 28.5% of the market in December 2022, compared to 34.8% for WSOP and 36.7% for team BetMGM. But PokerStars climbed to 39.2% in April, while BetMGM held onto 33.5%, and WSOP was down to 27.4% — its lowest market share since April 2018 (25.5%).

WSOP last led the market in October 2022, holding 45.2% of the market and grossing $1 million.

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Shared Liquidity Gave Market Boost Overall

On the surface, the market is displaying the same characteristics since the end of the opening months of the pandemic. Specifically, with few exceptions, monthly revenue has hovered around $2.5 million since September 2020.

By comparison, before the pandemic, the market did not clear $2 million in monthly revenue once between September 2017 and February 2020 — 30 consecutive months.

But without the shared liquidity that has lifted PokerStars since January, the market seems unlikely to be where it is currently. NJDGE data show the market trending in the low-$2 million range in the calendar year before PokerStars combined its player pools.

BetMGM Also Increased Market Share

PokerStars, on the Resorts license, grossed $903k in April, according to the NJDGE. That was down 5.4% from March ($954k), but the operator was up an impressive 36.6% year-over-year ($661k).

Second place for revenue in April was held by the BetMGM Network — which includes BetMGM Poker NJ, Borgata Poker NJ, and partypoker NJ. The group, which operates on the land-based casino license of Borgata, made $772k in April.

Revenue was essentially flat month-over-month, but BetMGM increased its market share to 33.5% in April, up from 30.9% in March. That’s evidence that team BetMGM has been weathering PokerStars’ recent rise better than WSOP. The group saw revenue decline 4.1% year-over-year ($805k).

WSOP, on the Caesars license, had $631k in revenue in April. The operator saw revenue decline 17.7% from the previous month ($767k), down 20% from one year ago ($789k).

If you or someone you know has a gambling problem and wants help, call the Virginia Council on Problem Gambling (VACPG) helpline at 1-888-532-3500

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