A recent online gaming survey conducted by Truist Securities places DraftKings as a “clear winner” in today’s US sportsbook market.
DraftKings took the top spot in both online sports betting and iGaming, analyst Barry Jonas said. The Boston-based sportsbook took 29% of share compared to FanDuel‘s 22%.
The survey results are based on 554 eligible responses with 69% of respondents ages 21-44 and a 55%-45% male-female split. More than half of all respondents, 54%, participated in both online sports betting and iGaming while 23% only bet on sports and 24% only played online casino.
While Jonas says he remains convicted that DraftKings is a long-term winner, he also noted responses concerning ESPN Bet show there is a path to material upside for the brand.
DraftKings preferred among survey respondents
Of the bettors who use both DraftKings and FanDuel, 61% said they preferred DraftKings between the two. DraftKings was favored predominantly for more promotions and better odds (both 35%) and easier deposits/withdrawals at 34%.
The 39% that picked FanDuel, however, gave similar reasons for their choice: better odds at 41%, easier deposits/withdrawals at 36% and better parlay product at 32%.
The results, Jonas said, suggest consumers generally view the two brands as “largely equal.”
DraftKings holds iGaming lead, too
DraftKings also holds the iGaming lead at 27%, with FanDuel in second at 18% and third BetMGM at 14%.
Most players, 62%, said they prefer to play online casino games where they bet on sports.
Caesars‘s two-brand strategy led to a 15% total share across its two apps, which Jonas called a “positive proof point.”
Disney needs to nail integration
ESPN Bet has two major areas of focus before NFL betting season begins, according to Penn CEO Jay Snowden: improve the parlay product on the Penn side and integrations on the Disney side.
ESPN is the primary app bettors in the survey (44%) use to check scores, Jonas said, and 64% said there would be interest in betting integration beyond just listed betting lines.
In fact, just 3% of those interested in seeing a deeper betting integration said they would not likely change to ESPN Bet. The other 97% said it was likely (52%) or possible (45%) could become their primary betting platform if those changes are made.
Jonas and his Truist team downgraded Penn after the ESPN Bet announcement on execution risk and the sizable cost of the 10 year, $2 billion deal. The Penn rating remains hold for now “though risk/reward is interesting at just ~7.0X our 2025E [estimated] EBITDA,” Jonas said.
VIPs skew younger
To be considered a VIP in the survey, respondents had to say they bet $5,000 or more a month on sports.
Nine out of 10 sports betting VIPs fell in that 21-44 age demographic, which comprised 69% of the total respondents. A subset of that demographic, ages 21-34, account for 67% of those VIPs while making up just 37% of total respondents.
Casino VIPs spending $5,000 or more each month showed similar rates: 88% of those VIPs came from the 21-44 age range. Casino is typically seen more as a female-led vertical but 65% of VIPs in casino were male compared to in sports betting.
Big bucks still flow offshore
The expansion of legal sports betting has not ended every legal bettor’s relationship with the offshore market.
Less than a third of all sports betting respondents, 31%, bet offshore, but that includes 71% of VIPs.
That tracks with data Jonas previously reported on from consumer bet tracking app Juice Reel which said offshore sportsbooks have 18% of total tracked bets but 46% of handle and 50% of revenue. s
Parlay popularity declining, drifting beyond casuals?
Jonas called out two noteworthy stats about parlays, which 74% of respondents said they bet:
- 39% of parlay bettors are betting fewer parlays than they did last year, compared to 20% betting more and 41% betting the same amount.
- 87% of those who wager $500 or more a month bet parlays. That is compared to 66% of those users betting under $500 a month.
