The story of DC sports betting is starting to become more difficult to believe, with another issue delaying a competitive districtwide mobile market.
Mayor Muriel Bowser has not yet signed the new fiscal budget, which means crucial changes to the DC sports betting law are stuck in limbo.
That means FanDuel, which was subcontracted by embattled DC Lottery partner Intralot to operate districtwide mobile betting, is down and unavailable for betting as of Tuesday.
A spokesperson for the mayor told LSR there was no update on when the budget may be signed.
FanDuel statement on DC sports betting
The nation’s leading sportsbook by market share is ready to continue betting operations as soon as the budget is signed:
“FanDuel remains committed to providing the District and its residents with a best-in-class sports betting offering,” a spokesperson told LSR. “Upon final approval of the FY2025 DC Budget, FanDuel will resume its sports betting offering as a Class A operator in partnership with DC United at Audi Field and continue to offer our citywide mobile app to the District of Columbia.”
Both BetMGM and Caesars, which operated limited mobile betting under the old rules, are also waiting to launch districtwide. BetMGM declined to comment on the delay while Caesars did not respond.
DraftKings and Fanatics have also stated they went to launch districtwide mobile betting.
DC Council sports betting changes
Sports betting in Washington DC has been handicapped by a no-bid deal given to Intralot to operate the only District-wide mobile sportsbook years ago.
Councilmember Kenyan McDuffie listened to the Office of Lottery and Gaming explain for years why GambetDC missed financial goals every year, with much of the failure blamed on the pandemic and a shift to remote work.
With Intralot’s contract up in June, McDuffie introduced a bill to open up a competitive mobile market in DC. That language was eventually added to the budget and approved by the council last month.
FanDuel performance strong so far
The first full month of operations for FanDuel showed a night and day difference compared to GambetDC’s performance last year.
FanDuel took 1.2 million bets and $29.7 million in handle for nearly $4.9 million in revenue during the month of May.
That compares to the 162,727 bets accepted by GambetDC in May 2023. Those bets totaled $5.4 million in handle and led to $711,282 in revenue.
Staff writer Mike Mazzeo contributed to this report.
