DraftKings stuck to what it knew well when it came to online casino, focusing on products and experiences that would interest its core sports betting customer.
Now that its table game market share is “orders of magnitude higher” than its slot share, DraftKings has an opportunity to appeal to those online casino customers that are more interested in traditional casino content, CEO Jason Robins said at the Bank of America Securities 2025 Gaming & Lodging Conference on Thursday.
“I think that we didn’t maybe appreciate and go as hard after as we are now, the opportunity for a slots first customer,” Robins said. “So I think it’s a big opportunity for us. … there’s clearly a lot of low-hanging fruit there.
“I think there’s some element that’s product, but most of it, I think, is the marketing and who you’re going after, like you were saying. … So that’s something that we are adjusting now. And hopefully, we’ll have some real opportunity there.”
Slots customer a recent focus
Robins hopes analysts and shareholders alike will begin to see the results of a push for slots-first customers in its earnings relatively soon.
“I think now we are making dramatic improvements and also focusing more on the right thing, which is that slots-first, casino-first customer,” Robins said. “And I don’t think that was true a few months ago. So when that will start to really show up in numbers that you guys look at, I don’t know, hopefully not too long. But I know that we are making that shift now, and so I expect results to follow.”
Robins made a similar comment during the company’s second quarter earnings call, which was mostly dominated by the company’s sports betting growth.
“And I think where we have our big opportunity is with that slots, casino-first player that we believe there’s many, many more out there using competitor apps that we will be able to provide a great offering and maybe at this point, don’t think of DraftKings as much as a place that they would go do that and think of us more as a sports brand,” he said. “So I think there’s a lot of good stuff on the product side and feel really good about that. And I think really, there’s a big opportunity to continue to build our brand and reach that slots first customer.”
Online casino next stream of state revenue?
Robins was asked about more potential tax increases that could be coming from sports betting states given the flurry of activity seen in 2025.
While Robins said he “wouldn’t be surprised” to see some states raise tax rates to be closer to the state average, he thinks legislators will be looking toward online casino for the next tax push.
“I think a lot of that’s been exhausted,” Robins said. “And I think that more likely than not, the next focus will be iGaming for new sources of revenue in some of those states.”
