PokerStars sportsbook brand BetStars is hoping to enter the New Jersey sports betting market as BetStarsNJ.com has been spotted preparing to enter the US market for the first time.
The BetStarsNJ.com website looked polished and ready to go live, with apps ready for both Android and iPhones before all public-facing content was removed. BetStarsNJ is conspicuously missing from the list of approved online sports betting sites on the Division of Gaming Enforcement (DGE) website.
The site displayed an introductory sign up offer of $500 in free bets. It also seemed like the operator would be offering a free $5 bet each week to any player that bets at least $25 during the introductory period, although the terms and conditions were not available.
The introduction of sports betting within the borders of New Jersey came about back in May 2018 when the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act (PASPA) was overturned, allowing individual states to offer sports betting to players within their borders.
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New Jersey was one of the first states to ready themselves for this new development.
Will BetStars Appear In Other States?
The answer is certainly, yes. In August the Twitter handle @BetStarsUSA was created, which shows BetStars claiming to be “the best new Twitter sports page for you all in America, for all you top money predictors of games”—giving players no doubt about the intentions of the operator hoping to enter multiple states with their sportsbook offering.
We have already seen PokerStars parent company The Stars Group partner with Pennsylvania bricks and mortar casino Mount Airy to bring sports betting to players under the BetStars brand. A branded {PokerStars) online poker room and online casino are also expected as part of the Mount Airy partnership.
But the sportsbook is likely to take center stage in the Mount Airy partnership. This is because in Pennsylvania sports betting license holders are limited to offering games on a single skin—meaning The Stars Group will exclusively run online sports betting via Mount Airy.
It is also expected that PokerStars will store player funds via a common wallet accessible across its entire suite of gaming verticals; casino, poker and sportsbook.
Which Sites Are Already Offering Sports Betting in NJ?
PokerStars is relatively late to the party as fantasy sports operators were first to make moves to get their offerings in front of players ahead of the start of the NFL season, which kicked off on September 6.
DraftKings entered the market first with a mobile app in August, and its long-time rival FanDuel followed up with its app this week—although it is currently only available on mobile via Android. An iOS version is apparently in the works.
Borgata Casino in Atlantic City launched its playMGM-branded mobile sportsbook in mid-August called playMGM NJ.
“The playMGM NJ Sports app features a full range of US and selected international sports with customers able to sign-up, deposit and withdraw cash directly from their mobile devices from any location in New Jersey,” said MGM at the time on the announcement.
It was also revealed that the playMGM NJ app would feature a single wallet that will allow players to use their funds between casino, poker and sports betting games.
SugarHouse sportsbook has gone live along with an offering from sports betting powerhouse William Hill.
Caesars Entertainment and Resorts are expected to launch sports betting apps soon as they have stated publicly that they want to launch mobile and online sports betting products before the start of the NFL.
It is also expected, due to their new 5+ year partnership, that Swedish owned, Kindred Group and Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Atlantic City will bring online sports betting to players in New Jersey.
