Dreary Memorial Day Rains on Atlantic City Casino Revenue, Prediction Markets Batter NJ Sportsbooks

Posted on: June 17, 2026, 08:18h. 

Last updated on: June 17, 2026, 08:20h.

Devin O'Connor @CasinoorgDevinO Read More
Expertise: Asia Pacific Gaming, Commercial Gaming, Legislation, Politics.
  • A cold, wet Memorial Day weekend drained Atlantic City casino revenue in May
  • Online casinos benefited, as iGaming revenue hit a record high
  • Prediction markets are cutting into sports betting handle in NJ

An unusually cold and rainy start to the summer season in Atlantic City gloomed casino revenue for May, the New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement reports.

Memorial Day Atlantic City New Jersey
The Atlantic City Boardwalk is pictured on a dreary Sunday, May 24, 2026. The Memorial Day holiday weekend traditionally signifies the beginning of beach season in New Jersey. (Image: Getty)

The nine casinos in Atlantic City posted gross gaming revenue (GGR) of $265.6 million. The May tally includes revenue from in-person slot machines and table games.

The $265.5 million result was flat from a year ago, a negligible gain of 0.1%, or $332,135.

A dreary Memorial Day weekend was blamed for the lackluster result.

The high temperature for Friday, May 22, was only 55 degrees Fahrenheit, 54 on Saturday with light rain, and 61 degrees and foggy on Sunday. While Memorial Day proper climbed to 72 degrees and was partly sunny, many travelers had by then opted to forego their Atlantic City beach trips for the unofficial kickoff to summer.

Six of the nine casinos saw an in-person GGR decline. Borgata remained the dominant casino at $72.9 million. Hard Rock was a distant second at $49.9 million, and Ocean Casino was third at $46.8 million.

Ocean experienced the greatest year-over-year revenue gain in May, with GGR up 11%. Bally’s also continued its comeback to relevance, with GGR up 6% to $12.5 million.

New Jersey Online Casino Record

New Jersey online casinos benefited from the glum Memorial Day weather.

iGaming GGR jumped 12% to $276.2 million, an all-time monthly high for the state online gaming market. New Jersey’s online casino operators won $29.4 million more in May 2026 than they did in May 2025.

Paired with sportsbook revenue of $85.2 million, total GGR in New Jersey for May totaled $627.1 million. That marked a 2% gain on the prior year.

FanDuel, partnered with Golden Nugget, led iGaming with GGR of $64 million. Resorts’ DraftKings was next at $47 million, and BetMGM was third at $34.6 million. 

Prediction Markets Hurting Sportsbooks

New Jersey oddsmakers saw their net win decline by 17% in May, a loss of more than $17.3 million. Most of the sports wagering action in New Jersey is facilitated online.

Federally regulated prediction markets, which now offer trading on sports, are being blamed for poaching some sports bets not only in New Jersey but across the country. Prediction markets began offering sports events late last year.

Last month, New Jersey’s online sportsbooks took $888.3 million in bets. That marked a 9% drop-off from May 2025, when online oddsmakers fielded over $967.1 million in wagers. The 8.6% difference equates to over $83.8 million fewer bets.

Year to date, New Jersey online oddsmakers have taken $4.58 billion in bets, 8.9% lower, or approximately $450.4 million fewer bets than last year.