DC council votes to open sports betting market and spark FanDuel competition
FanDuel is currently the only online sportsbook in the District of Columbia, but city members have voted in favor of a bill that would allow competitors as soon as July
Members of the Washington DC council have voted to open the online sports betting market in the US capital.
Those involved approved the $21bn budget on June 13 and ensured an amendment allowing multiple operators access to the market remained in the budget.
The vote could lead to FanDuel’s status as the city’s only online sportsbook operator soon coming to an end.
The DC council appears to want a more competitive online sports betting market, with the budget’s Sports Wagering Amendment Act of 2024 meaning both Caesars and BetMGM would also be permitted to offer bets citywide as ‘Class A’ operators.
Currently, other operators, including the aforementioned duo, are restricted to offering bets at professional sports venues and the two blocks surrounding them.
The Act also plans to create a new type of license; one that allows other sports betting operators to form partnerships with DC-based sports teams and offer wagering across the district.
The budget bill means operators such as Fanatics, DraftKings, and ESPN Bet would be eligible for ‘Class C’ licenses, allowing them to establish themselves within the local wagering market.
It is believed that members of the council regard legal sports betting as a means of boosting revenue, especially in the aftermath of an underwhelming return from the local lottery’s Intralot-backed GambetDC, which made way for FanDuel in April of this year, and will see its app scrapped in mid-October after being replaced by FanDuel’s.
Likewise, GambetDC kiosks will be phased out and replaced by the Flutter-subsidiary’s own over the coming months.
The idea of opening the market sparked debate, with Councilmember Zachary Parker opposed to it on the grounds any sports betting legislation should be passed as standalone legislation, rather than within the Fiscal Year 2025 Budget Support Act of 2024.
“There are three reasons to strike Subtitle R [the sports betting-related legislation] from the Budget Support Act,” Parker’s proposed amendment stated.
“(1) a change this important should undergo the normal legislative process; (2) revenue from the existing sports wagering contract is projected to exceed the revenue expected from Subtitle R; and (3) there are insufficient guarantees that the interests of small businesses who operate gambling kiosks are being protected under the new subtitle.”
A second vote on the proposals in the budget is scheduled for later this month and, if passed through, it the opening of the online sports betting market to other operators will come into effect from July 15.
In turn, Caesars and BetMGM would be allowed to operate in the district immediately after that date.
There are still significant steps required before that can occur, with the budget needing authorization from Mayor Muriel Bowser and a review from US congress.
Earlier this week, DC’s current sole operator FanDuel posted financial results from its first full month of operations, breaking city records for both handle and revenue.
In terms of bets wagered, FanDuel recorded $29.7m in May, a staggering 450% rise in contrast to the $5.4m GambetDC took the month prior.
It was a similar story on the revenue front, with FanDuel’s $4.9m soaring above the $711,282 generated in GambetDC’s final month before its phasing out began.
FanDuel’s May revenue total eclipsed the amount generated by all other operators in the state combined for any previous month.