New Jersey residents and college basketball-loving visitors could be in for a rude surprise later this month.
That’s when teams in the East Region of the NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament head to Newark’s Prudential Center for the Sweet 16 and Elite Eight games for that side of the bracket.
In other words, a highly regarded and favored squad like Duke or Alabama could play one or two contests crucial to March Madness bettors on New Jersey soil.
Take that business elsewhere
The location of those matchups, Newark, should be notable for bettors and bookmakers because New Jersey has specific rules for college sports betting. One of those could block bettors from wagering anything at all with New Jersey sportsbooks on East Region games starting Mar. 27.
That's because New Jersey forbids betting on “any collegiate sport or athletic event that takes place” in the Garden State.
That's been the case in New Jersey since legal sports betting launched in 2018. A voter referendum that sought to change those rules failed in 2021.
Put differently, New Jersey still prohibits someone from betting on a college game played in the state with licensed online sportsbooks like DraftKings or FanDuel. The same goes for Garden State brick-and-mortar books.
In short, then, the East Region’s Sweet 16 and Elite Eight contests in Newark are off-limits for sportsbook bettors in New Jersey.
New Jersey also bans betting on in-state colleges regardless of where they play, but since none are participating in this year’s men's tournament, that’s not an issue. However, that rule applies for the women’s tournament, as New Jersey-based Fairleigh Dickinson made the bracket and Princeton still might as well.
A not-quite-blanket ban
New Jersey is no different from more than a dozen other states with some sort of college sports betting restriction. These rules are in place to try to safeguard the integrity of games and protect student-athletes, among other things.
But does that mean people in New Jersey won’t be gambling on those East Region matchups at all? Not necessarily.
Hypothetically, a bettor in New Jersey could cross state lines to New York or Pennsylvania to wager on those games with a regulated sportsbook. Furthermore, someone traveling to New Jersey for the East Regionals could bet on them with a licensed operator before they arrive in the Garden State.
Here's a looming headache for March Madness bettors in New Jersey:
— Geoff Zochodne (@GeoffZochodne) March 18, 2025
-the East Region will play its Sweet Sixteen and Elite Eight games in Newark
-NJ sports betting rules prohibit wagering on "any single collegiate sports or athletic event that takes place in New Jersey"
Those would be the options state lawmakers and regulators authorized. There are, however, other avenues that opened for bettors, but not with the same blessing.
The more recent ones are sweepstakes sportsbooks and prediction markets. Both rely on federal law to operate in states that have yet to legalize sports betting, or that restrict certain wagering aspects, such as games played in-state or by an in-state college. They're not subject to the same rules or oversight as state-regulated books.
Kalshi, for instance, is a federally regulated exchange available throughout the U.S. that lets users to buy and sell event contracts, including ones tied to sports. A Kalshi trader could buy a "yes" contract for Arizona to beat Akron in their first-round matchup in the East Region for 90 cents. They would receive another 10 cents if Arizona wins.
The legal gambling industry frowns upon this type of event contract and its state-regulated members. So, too, are sweepstakes sportsbooks and their dual-currency structure that allows users to play for free if they choose. Lawmakers in New Jersey and other states have proposed banning sweeps.
So, these other options remain under a legal cloud at the moment. Yet they're there (along with always present offshore and illegal bookmakers) and could attract bettors' attention during March Madness.
