FanDuel debuts new UK Collaboration Hub
US sportsbook operator to create 250 engineering jobs in new Edinburgh powerhouse
FanDuel has officially opened a new UK Collaboration Hub in the Scottish capital Edinburgh as part of a focus on supporting technology across its operating platforms and apps.
The new hub, located on Freer Street in Edinburgh’s Fountainbridge area, includes state-of-the-art equipment, meeting areas (named after iconic Scottish sports stars) and multiple breakout areas.
Spanning three floors, the office aims to provide an “easy and inclusive” working environment, and includes a rooftop garden, wellbeing pods, acoustic pods, and a gaming area including a pool table and consoles.
Serving primarily as a connection point between FanDuel’s UK employees, it aims to spur project innovation and cross-disciplinary working between departments, inclusive of technology, engineering, product and user experience (UX) teams.
The facility can host as many as 550 employees, and FanDuel has pledged to create up to 250 new engineering jobs in the hub to support existing app and product development.
FanDuel VP of software engineering Matthew Taylor welcomed the opening of the hub as a key milestone in the firm’s innovation journey.
“We believe a collaborative approach is the best way to drive results and truly innovate when it comes to product delivery,” Taylor said.
“The official launch of our new Collaboration Hub today signals an exciting new chapter in the FanDuel story that will proactively bring together the best talent from across the country to innovate and excel in this dedicated creative space.
“The continued boom of the UK and Scottish tech sector is undisputed, and we wanted to create a new world-class environment to match our world-class engineering teams.
“Investing in our people is key and the Collaboration Hub helps us continue to recruit, develop and support our colleagues as we further grow our UK employee base,” Taylor added.
FanDuel was started in the Scottish capital in 2009 by Nigel Eccles as a pivot from news prediction site Hubdub, and began life as a daily fantasy sports (DFS) contest operator focusing on the US market.
In May 2018, the firm was acquired by Paddy Power Betfair just after the US Supreme Court overturned PASPA.
Since that time, the firm has moved on from its DFS roots to become the US sports betting market leader, operating with a 51% market share of the US sportsbook market and a 36% combined market share (inclusive of igaming).
In H1 2022, FanDuel revenue accounted for 97% of the total revenue generated by Flutter Entertainment in the US market rising by 50% year on year on a constant currency basis to just over £1bn.