- FanDuel’s parent, Flutter, insists the online gaming platform is the leader in the sports betting market in the United States.
- DraftKings last week took the top spot in the market.
- Flutter shares tumbled after the company reported disappointing third-quarter results.
FanDuel parent Flutter came out with a bang Thursday, insisting the online gaming platform is the market leader in sports betting in the United States after DraftKings boasted last week that it had captured the top slot.
“We have a billion dollars more in revenue in the U.S., so we’re definitely number one,” Flutter CEO Peter Jackson said in an interview with CNBC after an earnings conference call.
Although Jackson projected confidence in the company’s market position, FanDuel’s revenue failed to meet Wall Street expectations in the third quarter. In the US, the company’s revenue grew 20% year-over-year to $820 million, and average monthly players grew 38%.
Flutter shares tumbled after the company reported disappointing third-quarter results. It blamed its softer-than-expected top line on a spate of customer gains in September and October, foreign exchange headwinds, a slowdown in Australia and tax changes in India.
It did not elaborate on earnings results, but reiterated its forecast for full-year adjusted EBITDA of $180 million in the U.S.
The FanDuel Inc. app. and the DraftKings Inc. website. are set for a photo in Washington, DC
Andrew Harer | Bloomberg | Getty Images
DraftKings, by contrast, issued improved guidance in its third-quarter earnings report last week. The company said it expects full-year adjusted EBITDA losses of $95 million to $115 million and revenue of $3.67 billion to $3.72 billion.
On a conference call with analysts and investors, Flutter CEO Jackson said he thinks the measuring stick for determining who the market leader is needs to change. He said that net gaming revenue, not gross gaming revenue, should be the more important indicator of who comes out on top. There, FanDuel has 47% market share and holds the top spot over DraftKings.
FanDuel claims to be the number two iGaming or online casino in the US. Its gaming revenue grew 52% year over year. FanDuel said it is the fastest growing brand in the space.
E-gaming is more lucrative than sports betting — and it’s a big contributor to DraftKings winning the number one slot. The acquisition of Golden Nugget Online is paid out in the online casino game.
DraftKings quickly took the crown, and CEO Jason Robbins touted the company’s market position in his earnings call and in an interview with Jim Cramer on CNBC’s “Mad Money.” Robbins said he was very proud, “but also realized that it doesn’t mean anything if we don’t continue to build on the momentum we’ve generated.”
DraftKings took the top spot from FanDuel in August in online betting, combining iGaming and online sports betting but leaving retail sports betting behind, according to Eilers & Krejcik, a gaming industry research and consulting firm.
But traditionally, gambling outcomes are categorized separately as sports betting (online and retail) and iGaming.
Also, the Eilers & Krejcik research report was released before all states reported their game numbers. August is typically a slower sports month, so iGaming results would represent a larger percentage of the total.
At least one more rival believes it has a claim to a piece of the online betting crown. On MGM’s earnings call Wednesday, CEO Bill Hornbuckle acknowledged DraftKings’ August triumph but said, “Year after year, we’re number one in iGaming. So we have a very big position that we want to defend and we will continue to do so.”
