June 14 marks the fifth anniversary of the first legal sports bet in New Jersey. It also happens to be the day of the first-ever legitimate sports bet made inside an Atlantic City casino.
The two events were not one and the same.
It seems odd that a city synonymous with East Coast gambling was not where the Garden State kicked off NJ sports betting. That honor belongs to a horse racing track about 90 miles north of Atlantic City and its nine casinos.
Ironically, some of the biggest movers and shakers in the gambling business were gathered in AC for an industry conference at Harrah’s Resort. Not many of them made the trek up the Garden State Parkway to take part in Gov. Phil Murphy placing ceremonial bets at Monmouth Park Racetrack.
