Boomer’s Sportsbook Opens at Ellis Island, But That’s Not the Big Story
Ellis Island has a new sportsbook, Boomer’s Sportsbook. It’s not just new at Ellis Island, it’s new in the world.
But that’s not the big story. The big story is what Boomer’s Sportsbook and Ellis Island (and its owners, the Ellis family) have in store for sports betting’s future.
First, the adorable hoopla, then the scoop.
First, we must all acknowledge “Boomer’s” is an awkward name for a sportsbook.
“Boomer” has a very distinct meaning in modern American culture. It means “old.” And out of touch. And resistant to change. You know, as in “baby boomer,” folks born between 1946 and 1964.
Boomer’s Sportsbook DGAF about that definition of “boomer.”
The Boomer’s Sportsbook name comes from a dog. Former dog. The deceased dog of the sportsbook’s founder, Joe Asher. Boomer the dog was named after a racehorse.
Anyway, beyond the name, Boomer’s is so new, there are only three of them so far. The first was in Elko, Nevada, hotbed of gaming excitement. That location opened Aug. 1, 2025. There’s also one at Casino Valle Verde in Henderson, whatever the hell that might be. (Actually, it’s owned by Gary Ellis, a name you’ll want to remember for later in this story.)
Now, there’s a Boomer’s at Ellis Island, in a temporary space that’s about the size of the casino’s high limit room which has been compared to a broom closet. Mostly by us.
Joe Asher is no slouch when it comes to the world of sports betting. We met him when he was the CEO of William Hill’s U.S. operations, he was also the president of sports betting for IGT.
Boomer’s is starting small, but has made it tempting for sports bettors to sign up for their app. New sign-ups get up to $250 in their “First Deposit Match” promotion.
There have been rumblings Asher is getting back into the sportsbook game because he knows something the rest of us don’t. Namely, that the in-person registration requirement for digital sports betting could be going away. The rule, a holdover from early sportsbook regulation, has long hamstrung Nevada’s growth in mobile wagering.
While other states have embraced quick, app-based sign-ups, Nevada forces customers to physically visit a sportsbook counter to activate an account. The result? Lost market share, clunky onboarding and a user experience that feels stuck in the BlackBerry pager era. If that irksome barrier comes down, it could unleash a surge of new customers and clever operators like Joe Asher could scoop up market share.
That’s all speculation, but this next part isn’t.
Now, for the scoop nobody’s talking about, even the so-called “sports experts.” Being a sports expert is like being an expert in drying paint, but far be it from us to yuck on anyone’s yum, no matter how mind-numbing (and brain-injuring) the yumming might be.
The Ellis family, patriarched by the aforementioned Gary Ellis, owns something called Moolah Play, the customer facing name for Marker Trax.
Moolah Play is casino credit customers can access from their slot machine. We are very familiar with this system, as we have wagered more than $1.8 million dollar-in at Ellis Island this year, much of it via this handy casino credit program.
You basically get a line of credit in advance, then you can do a virtual “marker” without stopping or going to the ATM or thinking about your life choices.
But here’s the thing. Moolah Play by Marker Trax isn’t just for slots. It’s also for table games, iGaming and, wait for it, sports betting.
We are not a sports person, or a sports bettor, or a sports betting app expert. We do know a potential windfall when we see one.
Boomer’s Sportsbook is expected to have Moolah available on its app. We are not aware of another sports betting app that gives customers the opportunity to use in-app credit. Once this system delivers the results it inevitably will for casinos and sportsbooks, the upside potential is staggering.
When the Ellis family gets Moolah into the major sports betting apps, they are going to be billionaires and will finally have the funds to hire someone to make sure their dice pips are correct.
Including a way to easily access credit in sports betting apps raises a slew of questions, of course. Which is why there are a number of hurdles left to overcome, both regulatory and political, but in-app credit is inevitable.
There was a big jump in gambling addiction following the legalization of sports betting across the country. The number of states with sportsbooks grew from one in 2017 to 38 in 2024.
Fun fact: The first legal sportsbook in a casino, however, opened at the Union Plaza in Las Vegas in 1975. The Stardust opened the second a year later.
The benefits of Moolah Play to operators is pretty obvious. The system increases play, players can’t walk with the money, there’s less cash on hand and (wait for it) the system can help identify problem gambling. No, really, that’s what they’re going with.
Honestly, we love and hate Moolah Play. Is it convenient? Absolutely. The fee for using it is 1% of the amount of credit used.
Do we gamble more having access to credit on our favorite video poker machine? Absolutely. More than we’d like to? Sometimes. That’s not Moolah’s fault, that’s our fault.
How can we change the subject smoothly here?
Boomer’s Sportsbook will move to its official space when the long-awaited Ellis Island expansion, sometime around Labor Day.
The expansion opening has been a moving target, but we’ve tried to stay on the latest developments on the Twitters.
We’ll be there for the debut of the Ellis Island casino expansion and if Moolah Play goes the way we think it will, you’ll be hearing much more about the growing Ellis empire in the very near future.
The pool of eligible Ellis daughters is dwindling! Don’t say we didn’t sound the alarm.
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