Sports Betting
Are DraftKings and FanDuel planning to change their sports betting odds and cover tax nationwide?
At the end of last week, HoldCrunch CEO Tom Johnson discussed Week 1 NFL betting prices with Barry Jonas of Truist. Johnson explained how DraftKings and FanDuel could change their sports betting odds and cover tax increases. However, this would all be happening as the two leading U.S. sportsbooks maintain “product superiority.” In a note last Thursday, Johnson and Jonas discussed that both sportsbooks could add $240 million in revenue. That is currently more than double their expected amount of tax increases.
Tom Johnson doesn’t expect a change to happen quickly. He envisions a more “gradual” increase where the two U.S. operators work in unison. Additionally, Johnson mentioned how he will keep a close eye on NBA odds for the 2024-25 season. FanDuel offered better odds in 2023-24 than DraftKings, who lost part of that handle.
How is ESPN BET competing with other U.S. sportsbooks?
Truist is a financial services company and bank in the United States. Barry Jonas of Truist has worked with Penn Entertainment, the parent company of ESPN BET. In meetings with Penn management, Jonas stressed they will not overly rely on promotions to attract customers. In Week 1 of the 2024 NFL season, ESPN BET had the most favorable odds. Jonas called this “critical” for the stock rate. Finally, Trusit is impressed with the shares they saw from Penn, most notably the success of ESPN BET.
BetMGM has remained consistent with their odds and is still largely competitive in the U.S. sports betting market. They were only slightly behind the industry leaders. Caesars Sportsbook got back on track after having a higher hold margin over the past few quarters. However, that did come at the expense of their handle share. In the negative for Week, 1 of the 2024 NFL season was Fanatics sportsbooks with the “least favorable odds” according to Barry Jonas. ESPN BET hopes to see the same success when the figures from Week 2 are released.
Flutter is buying into sports betting in Brazil
On September 25, Flutter is holding investor day in New York City at 1:00 p.m. EST. Registration will be available online for anyone interested in attending. Institutional investors and research analysts can also request an invitation to Flutter’s live event. As the parent company of FanDuel, Flutter is forced on the company’s future growth.
When Flutter has its investor day on 9/25, there will be a presentation about the 56% stake that the company bought in NSX Group. Flutter paid $350 million in cash to be able to operate in Brazil. They’re expected to be open for business and fully regulated in early 2025. In September, NXS Group is expected to generate $256 million in revenue and $34 million in adjusted EBITDA.