Australian sports betting operator PlayUp has received an official go-ahead from the New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement to launch a fully-scaled sports betting product in the Garden State. This comes on the tail of the company acquiring license in January 2021. PlayUp partnered with FR Park Racing, LP (FRP), a company owned by Pennwood Racing, Inc, which became the official land-based partner to the brand in the Garden State.
The present regulatory approval marks a second state for the Australian operator in which it has gone live. This follows a launch in Colorado earlier this year. PlayUp was able to set up shop in the Centennial State back in March bringing its proprietary sportsbook with it. The company made use of Colorado’s laxer approach towards online and mobile gambling and teamed up with the Bull Durham Casino in Blackhawk to release its portfolio.
New Jersey Becomes an Important Second Market for the Company
Pivoting around the same idea, New Jersey is one of the most mobile-friendly gambling states with an estimated 90% of all consumers opting for their handheld devices to place a bet. Preceding its launch in the Garden State, PlayUp inked a partnership with the New Jersey Devils, an NHL franchise.
While New Jersey has got crowded quickly after the launch of regulated sports betting PlayUp is confident it may still drive inroads in the state. PlayUp USA CEO Dr. Laila Mintas argued that the New Jersey launched was a significant milestone for the overseas operator, and praised the market for its high regulatory standards:
“Both consumers and investors that we have, have cleared the most stringent regulatory standards in the world. We have aggressive growth plans for our jurisdictional footprint in 2022, and going into other states with New Jersey approval in our back pocket is a positive sign for other regulators.”
PlayUp is also poised to release additional products on New Jersey’s iGaming market, including casino, but this would still need regulatory approval.
PlayUp Consolidates Its US Footprint and Pivots Further Expansion
The company tapped Dennis Drazin as a member of the Board of Directors to reinforce its presence in the country. Drazin is confident that New Jersey will be another opportunity for PlayUp to provide fixed-odds horse racing to the state and other regulated jurisdictions in the US.
New Jersey is a particularly important state for most online operators as in August this year, $613 million of the total $664 million state handle was generated through online betting platforms. To date, New Jersey has collected over $6.13 billion since it launched regulated gambling in June 2018.