The Tuesday Line: Fanatics vs. DraftKings, Alabama Sports Betting
Here’s today’s quick rundown in the world of U.S. gambling. Check out The Monday Line if you are catching up on the news.
Fanatics vs. DraftKings
Quite the bombshell dropped in the middle of the night from Front Office Sports on a brewing legal battle that involves Fanatics, DraftKings, and an executive leaving the latter to join the former to head up its VIP operation just a few weeks before the Super Bowl. Recency bias and all, but this might be the wildest thing to happen in the US sports betting industry in the past five years. There’s not enough space in this format to do this story justice, but if you have some spare time, read the DraftKings complaint. My only hot take for now: Why did anyone involved think any of this was a good idea? Everyone had to know this would end up going scorched earth. Yes, the potential to move a ton of VIP action is needle-moving, but so far none of the parties involved comes off looking very good. This issue is going to come up in front of some amount of gaming regulators over the coming year for both Fanatics and DraftKings. And both parties are going to be dealing with this distraction during one of the most important weeks for a sportsbook operation. Not great.
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ESPN app integrating ESPNBet
Last week we saw some more serious integration of ESPN Bet into the ESPN universe. Now, you can get an odds board on the preview for games on the ESPN app:
If the deal between Penn Entertainment and ESPN is going to reach its potential, this kind of integration is a much-needed addition. It needs to continue to evolve, however. For instance, here ESPN is trying to convert people to an ESPN+ subscription for gambling picks rather than sending them to the sportsbook.
Alabama sports betting?
After some legislative progress in Mississippi and Georgia last week, we are now seeing signs of life for sports betting expansion in Alabama. Online sports betting is part of a larger gaming package in the state, and there is reason for optimism in a state that has not tackled the issue as seriously as some others.
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