DraftKings and FanDuel CEOs relaxed over Fanatics and ESPN Bet challenge
Jason Robins and Amy Howe welcome new market entrants but warn sports betting is not for the “faint of heart”
DraftKings CEO Jason Robins and FanDuel CEO Amy Howe have downplayed the potential impact of both Fanatics Betting and Gaming and the recent tie-up between PENN Entertainment and ESPN, suggesting they will retain their dominant positions in US sports betting.
The pair were speaking as part of the CEO keynote address at G2E Las Vegas, in which they were grilled on a range of diverse subjects, including the black market, the role of AI, and pick’em style daily fantasy sports (DFS).
When asked if they were concerned about the potential of both Fanatics’ ability to cross-sell with its global sports merchandising business, as well as the ability of PENN to convert ESPN viewers into sports bettors, Robins moved to play down any talk of loss of market share.
“We’re in one of the most competitive markets in the world and anyone who thinks they will come in and just take over, that’s just foolish,” the DraftKings CEO said.
“Many companies are coming into this space in a big way, ready to spend with big brands, a real vision, and good people. That’s not going to change.
“However, most people underestimate how hard it is to operate your product, they just assume you put up a sportsbook and the money rolls in.
“There’s always going to be new companies coming into the market and it’s always going to be competitive, that’s great, that’s the purpose of legalisation,” he remarked.
Robins’ counterpart at FanDuel, Howe, was equally dismissive of these new challengers, citing the number of businesses that have entered the sports betting market, only to later drop out due to factors such as economic constraints or lack of brand penetration.
“There’s obviously been several companies who have dropped out, it’s not for the faint of heart, but I do think there’s two things that ultimately are going to matter to the long-term success of new entrants,” Howe said.
“One is a scale position; we’re no different to any other e-commerce company, where at some point you must decide if the economics of continuing to acquire customers make sense.
“The second is continuous innovation. It’s not that easy to continue to redefine yourself and improve the product continuously,” she added.