New Jersey to Set $5M Limit on Sports Betting

The New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement will set a limit on all individual sports wagers to $5 million.

This means that no casinos who operate sportsbooks should ever and under any circumstances accept high-rollers’ bets that exceed this staggering amount of money.

massive success from its launched sports betting market, is about to undergo certain regulatory adjustments…

…and among these changes will be an amendment that will ban sport bets over $5 million – despite there not being any official indication that there has yet been any attempts at this kind of wager.

Altering the Market for the Better

A document that is in the works – and that can be found online at the NJ government website – contains 106 pages of detailed directives and instructions that all licensed operators in the Garden State will have to adhere to…

…with prohibition of $5M wagers being the most crucial one. There is no record that any sportsbook in the US has ever accepted a wager that was anywhere near the proposed limit. In fact, DraftKings sportsbook’s median wager stands at less than $10 at the moment.

However, looking at it collectively, New Jersey’s sportsbooks have thus far taken a handle of $1.25 billion in bets!

The record for the value of a bet is held by a Las Vegas gambler, Billy Walters, who placed a $3.5 million bet on the New Orleans Saints winning the 2010’s Super Bowl XLIV (in the end, Saints did win).

Before him, Carl Icahn, the billionaire businessman that is currently being linked with the purchase of Caesars Entertainment stakes, placed a $2.4 million bet on San Francisco 49ers’ win in 1995’s Super Bowl XXIX (he was also lucky to see his team triumph).

Consultation First, Decision Later

NJ’s gaming regulator wishes to see this particular amendment implemented before the end of 2019…

…it will have to be, however, preceded by a public debate and discussion. This will make the state become the first to instate a sports wagers ceiling. Colorado and South Dakota already have betting limits of $100 and $1,000 dollars respectively, but they apply to commercial casinos, not sportsbooks.

The public’s written comments on this must be filed to DGE by March 8th.

The reason behind this max bet limit is, first and foremost, that the state is trying to protect the integrity and fairness of sports games. But there is another incentive…

…and that is with a market as young as New Jersey’s, a lot of operators are eager and willing to act in haste and take a high-roller’s bet without the proper checking process.

Source:

“New Jersey Considers $5 Million Sports Bet Ceiling”, njonlinegambling.com, January 21, 2019.