Two new sportsbooks are coming to New Jersey. According to company representatives, Bally’s Atlantic City and Harrah’s, both of which are Caesars Entertainment properties, are going to introduce permanent sports gambling facilities within the next couple of weeks, as cited by The Press of Atlantic City.
Both of the venues began offering temporary sportsbooks last summer while Caesars worked on the permanent facilities. Combined, they carry a price tag of $11 million and will bring Caesars in line with other Boardwalk casinos. Currently, it is the only operator on the Boardwalk without a permanent sports gambling venue.
Harrah’s should open its sportsbook with two weeks, but there are doubts whether or not Bally’s will have everything in place by June. Even Kevin Ortzman, the regional president for Caesars Atlantic City, is only “cautiously optimistic” that it can meet the deadline.
Ortzman indicates that Caesars doesn’t want to rush into the game. There is some stiff competition for bettors in New Jersey and the company wants to make sure it does things right. Ortzman says that it is creating a “category-killer” in Atlantic City.