An amendment to sports betting legislation reportedly floated in the New Jersey Assembly Thursday could give at least one more Atlantic City casino a shot at offering patrons a chance to wager on most of the Big Four professional sports leagues.
Ocean Resort Casino, which is replacing the former Revel, the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Atlantic City and the Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa have already made known their plans to offer sports betting as soon as New Jersey legislators approve laws to legalize it within the state.
A change to the bill, which went before state lawmakers Thursday, would allow the Golden Nugget Atlantic City to also add sports betting to its gaming offerings if the legislation gets approval, according to the Press of Atlantic City.
The state Assembly is expected to amend its proposed sports betting laws to allow casinos that own more than 10 percent of a sports team to still offer sports betting, but only on sports other than those in which they own a team.
That adjustment impacts the Golden Nugget since owner Tilman Fertitta also owns the Houston Rockets. If the reworked sports betting laws get the thumbs up from the New Jersey legislature, it would permit betting on sports, other than the NBA, at the Golden Nugget.
Once this legislation is approved, Gov. Phil Murphy's signature would make it law. Before the ink is even dry, bets would already be underway since several Atlantic City casinos already took steps to ensure they will have the infrastructure in place for the new offering.
Aside from the addition of sports betting to the Atlantic City market, the industry will see two new properties open their doors on the same day. Both Ocean Resort and Hard Rock are scheduled to open on June 28.