Flutter CEO: “DraftKings is our number one enemy” in the US
Peter Jackson insists FanDuel has the better product than its competitors, as he demands challenger mentality from the US operator
Flutter CEO Peter Jackson has shed light on FanDuel’s battle for US dominance against Boston-based operator DraftKings, with the CEO laying down the challenge to his teams not to become complacent.
Speaking at the most recent Morgan Stanley TMT conference, Jackson discussed the market-leading position of Flutter’s FanDuel brand in the States, noting that despite its stature, it must adopt the attitude of a challenger brand.
Earlier this week, Flutter’s Q4 and full-year 2024 results stated FanDuel had a sports betting gross gambling revenue (GGR) market share of 43% for the quarter, as well as 26% of the US igaming market, providing a blended GGR market share of 36%.
Revenue for the US for the final three months of the year was up 14% YOY to $1.6bn, with active monthly players jumping 15% to 4.5 million.
The report noted a “market-leading product proposition” had resulted in “strong customer engagement with another quarter of increased player frequency”.
Despite that success, the Flutter chief spoke of his concerns surrounding complacency and noted he is driven by maintaining focus on the customer.
“We want to be obsessed with what our customers want, we want to make sure we’ve got advantaged economics, we want to be absolutely ruthless in making sure that we challenge our decision making and doing the right thing for the business every day,” Jackson explained.
He continued, acknowledging FanDuel’s main competitor in the US, adding: “It helps that we have a different business we are competing with in almost every market. Here in the States, DraftKings is our number one enemy and they are people we want to beat every day.
“We’ve got a better product than them. We want to make sure that we beat them on everything that we do.”
DraftKings own Q4 earnings were published last month, and showed revenue of $1.4bn, up 13% YOY, along with 4.8 million average monthly paying customers.
Elsewhere, Jackson issued an update on the burgeoning prediction market sector that has seen the likes of Crypto.com and Kalshi roll out sports event contracts.
The product has sparked concern from some quarters that it allows exchange firms to sidestep state regulations that licensed sportsbooks such as FanDuel must adhere to.
The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), the regulatory authority overseeing the sector in the US, is set to discuss the product at a roundtable meeting scheduled for later this month.
When pressed for comment on the topic, Jackson responded: “Let’s imagine the roundtable allows us to proceed, what does it actually achieve from a consumer perspective? I think it allows you in states which have not got regulated sports betting to do something.
“There’s a few things you can look at from a prediction perspective, but it doesn’t give you the richness of a fully-fledged sports betting platform. I think some of the revenue expectations are probably a bit too optimistic.
“You could see being part of the ‘prime the pump’ strategy to bring customers on board. You can subsequently then be converted into sports betting if legislation is allowed.”
On the topic of regulation, Jackson noted that Flutter’s expects one new state to legalize igaming in the next three years.
He discussed how states without a regualted igaming market could benefit from establishing one, noting: “I think it’s a very compelling opportunity for states to drive revenues.
“We need to remember that there’s a lot of people who are playing these products, both sports and igaming in states where it is not yet legalized.
“I think it’s a massive opportunity for us, from a sports perspective and player protection perspective, to improve integrity. But principally, from a fiscal standpoint, to collect tax revenues, we’re hopeful we will start to see the tide turn there.”
Flutter’s full-year 2024 results documented a 19% year-over-year (YOY) increase in company-wide revenue, totaling $14bn.
Group adjusted EBITDA climbed 26% YOY to just shy of $2.4bn, alongside a corresponding adjusted EBITDA margin of 16.8%.