when did atlantic city legalize gambling

For example, a 2019 white paper commissioned by iDEA Growth concluded that online gambling created 3,240 indirect jobs in New Jersey. Nor do these figures include the non-casino jobs created by online gambling firms. Online gambling is not destroying brick & mortar casino jobs. Even during COVID, the average number of employees per casino was around 2,400. 2019 showed the average employment per casino was around 2,900. In 2016, Atlantic City was down to seven casinos, but they had an average of 3,100 employees. In 2012, the city’s twelve casinos employed an average of 2,900 people. However, without context, it’s hard to argue that the data from the NJCCC Annual Report doesn’t show a decline in casino employment.īut what happens when we add a little nuance?Įxcluding the COVID years, the chart shows that Atlantic City casino employment is relatively steady on a per operational casino basis. But What About Jobs?Īs the revenue argument fell apart, the online gambling Millerites were also keen on saying online gambling would decimate employment. If that growth holds, land-based casino revenue could eclipse $3.3 billion, which hasn’t happened since 2011. Most importantly, the chart shows land-based revenue was steadily growing alongside online casino gambling and sports betting pre-COVID.īased on the early results in 2022, land-based casino revenue is up 22% through February ($396 million in 2022 compared to $308 million in 2021). Before 2021, total gambling revenue hadn’t eclipsed $4 billion since 2008. Looking at the bigger picture, 2021 was Atlantic City’s best year since 2008. Despite COVID restrictions and concerns lingering, 2021 land-based casino revenue was near 2019’s six-year high. Instead, the evidence suggests that online gambling, and later sports betting, saved Atlantic City’s gambling industry. These doomsday warnings never came to pass. The anti-online gambling crowd spent years with fingers in their ears shouting, “online gambling will destroy the Atlantic City casino industry and lead to a problem gambling epidemic,” to any outlet willing to listen. When New Jersey legalized online gambling in 2013, the modern-day version of the Millerites came out of the woodwork.

When did atlantic city legalize gambling