New Jersey: Caesars breaks ground on new trackside sportsbook at Monmouth Park

Monmouth Park and Caesars Entertainment broke ground Tuesday on a new trackside sportsbook and entertainment complex projected to open in 2025. The venue will be the first outside of Atlantic City to conduct sports betting in New Jersey. 

The facility and full-service restaurant combo are set to feature 16,000 square feet of indoor and outdoor sports viewing, with wall-to-wall flat-screen televisions, food from restaurant partner Shake Shack, and more than 25 self-service betting kiosks.

The ceremonial groundbreaking featured representatives from Monmouth Park, Caesars Sportsbook, and local dignitaries who planted golden shovels in the ground to mark the occasion.

"We are proud to continue investing in Monmouth Park to elevate the sports betting experience for New Jersey sports fans," said Dan Shapiro, Senior Vice President and Chief Development Officer at Caesars Digital.

"The sportsbook at Monmouth Park has been a success since Gov. Phil Murphy placed the state's first legal sports bet in 2018 and continues to be an outstanding complement to our online businesses. We look forward to continuing our support for horse racing in New Jersey and bringing sports fans and racing fans to this historic racetrack."

Dennis Drazin, Chairman and CEO of Darby Development, operator of Monmouth Park, said: "We're extremely excited to begin this next chapter with the upcoming opening of the new Caesars Sportsbook at Monmouth Park. This facility will be state-of-the-art with all the amenities that a first-class sportsbook can offer to patrons.

"As we start our sixth year of sports betting, we continue to see the growth and expansion we knew would eventually happen. This will be a magnificent addition to the Monmouth Park facility as our partnership with Caesars continues to evolve."

In 2018, Monmouth Park accepted the first legal in-person sports wager in New Jersey when it opened a William Hill sportsbook following the overturning of the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act (PASPA). 

In September 2020, Caesars acquired William Hill for $3.7 billion, prompting the space to be rebranded as Caesars Sportsbook in early 2022, where it has accepted in-person sports wagers and offered pari-mutuel wagering.