Atlantic City casinos cash in on Super Bowl

John Curran

Thursday, Jan. 31, 2002 | 9:37 a.m.

ATLANTIC CITY -- At Showboat Casino Hotel, 900 high-rollers will gather in a ballroom equipped with big-screen TVs, team-colored balloons and a buffet packed with shrimp, chicken wings and Italian sausage.

Over at Bally's Park Place Casino Hotel, welterweight John Molnar will square off against Hercules Kyvelos in a 10-round boxing match dubbed "Superbrawl" on Saturday. Then on Sunday, 1,500 invited guests will nosh on roast pork sandwiches, get free Super Bowl souvenir T-shirts and line up to shake hands with Willie Mays at a ballroom party, beneath big-screen TVs.

Similar shindigs are planned at all three Trump casinos. At Trump Taj Mahal, a Super Sunday Sweepstakes will give away $25,000 and jewelry.

Even though they can't take Super Bowl bets -- unlike Nevada, New Jersey doesn't offer sports betting -- Atlantic City's casinos still get a piece of the action, parlaying the NFL championship game into a big weekend.

They take in up to 20 percent more at the blackjack tables, baccarat pits and slot machines than on an ordinary winter weekend, officials say.

"It's not New Year's Eve, but it's right up there in the top 20 days of the year for us, particularly because it's on a Sunday, which extends the weekend," Annie Allman, vice president of marketing at Showboat, said.

"It's a natural tie-in. A lot of our customers are interested in sports, and they like to get together and watch the Super Bowl at a party."

Showboat expected a higher percentage of its invitees to show up for its Super Bowl party at the Mississippi Pavilion than in years past, because of post-Sept. 11 backlash.

Driving to Atlantic City is easier for many fans than trekking to New Orleans to see the game or to Las Vegas to bet on it.

"This year in particular, people are more reluctant to get on a plane," Allman said.

While it'll be a big day, Sunday would have been even bigger for Atlantic City casinos had the Philadelphia Eagles won a spot in the game, because many casino patrons live in eastern Pennsylvania, 56 miles away.

"The excitement and the turnout would have been much higher with a hometown favorite like that," Kenneth Condon, president of Bally's Park Place Casino Hotel, said.

His casino has made a tradition out of Super Bowl weekend boxing matches, luring fight fans in for what turns out to be two nights of gambling.

He estimates that Bally's Park Place will get a 10 percent to 20 percent boost from the added Super Bowl weekend action.

Conventional thinking says that the wider the margin of victory, the more likely partying gamblers will walk out on the big-screen TVs and buffets to head to the casino.

But close games can send gamblers back to the tables, too.

"I've seen it work both ways," Allman said. "I've seen games that were just stinkers, and everyone trickled downstairs before halftime and we did great. I've seen others where people were on the edge of their seats and they're so excited it gets the juices going."