Fanatics Betting & Gaming will be live in 11 legal US states prior to the start of the NFL betting season on Sept. 7.
Fanatics made the announcement on Thursday, coinciding with the initial completion of the sale of PointsBet’s US business. Fanatics has acquired PointsBet for $225 million.
CEO Michael Rubin had previously said the operator’s goal was to be live in 12-15 states by the start of NFL betting season (down from 15-20).
Fanatics Sportsbook fully open for NFL betting
Fanatics Sportsbook is currently live in four states:
- Maryland
- Massachusetts
- Ohio
- Tennessee
The states all went live in mid-August after an extended beta testing period in the markets. The release said “Fanatics Sportsbook will integrate the best parts of the PointsBet tech platform to supercharge its sports betting engine.”
Seven others see rebrand for NFL betting
Seven other states will rebrand from PointsBet to “PointsBet, a Fanatics experience” until the operator eventually gets regulatory approval to use Fanatics Sportsbook.
- Colorado
- Iowa
- Kansas
- New Jersey
- Pennsylvania
- Virginia
- West Virginia
A Fanatics spokesperson said customers will be unaffected by the rebrand.
More changes to come starts
Two other states that aren’t part of the initial closing wave, Illinois and Indiana, will eventually start as the rebranded “PointsBet, a Fanatics experience.”
New York, however, will initially stay as PointsBet. The NYS Gaming Commission will make its recommendation on Fanatics in September.
On Thursday, the Wyoming Gaming Commission approved the sports betting license transfer of PointsBet to Fanatics.
Fanatics feels it has differentiation from other operators with a personalized betting page, and the accumulation of FanCash rewards credits, which can be used to buy retail merchandise.
King: focused on customer, not market share
Fanatics is obviously joining the US sports betting industry a bit late and will not simply spend to buy market share, FBG CEO Matt King said.
“We are excited about what we are building at Fanatics Betting and Gaming and this acquisition accelerates our plans. We have a ten-year plan that focuses on the customer and not market share. We are going to acquire customers efficiently, allowing us to return savings to customers by investing in the customer experience at Fanatics Sportsbook and PointsBet, a Fanatics Experience.”
PBH shareholders approved payment plan
The initial closing took place after PointsBet shareholders overwhelmingly approved a plan to pay out the funds from the sale.
Shareholders will get about A$1 per share in mid-September and another 39 Australian cents and 44 Australian cents per share at the final closure, expected in March.
