Sports betting apps are kind of like winning thoroughbred racehorses — they need to be competitive if they expect high earnings. Of the seven licensed apps scheduled to launch in Kentucky on Thursday, Sept. 28, five are market leaders. Two are up-and-comers only available in a handful of states.
Each wants a sizable share of the Kentucky online sports betting market, estimated to be worth approximately $200 million in taxable revenue annually at full implementation.
Gaming Today looks at each of the seven apps in terms of market share and performance in 2023 Q2 as each app rounds the bend toward Thursday’s Kentucky mobile sports betting launch.
Note: Circa Sports is Kentucky’s eighth licensed online sportsbook. However, the app is not expected to launch until later this year. Circa is partnered with The Mint Gaming Hall Cumberland and Cumberland Run in the Commonwealth. A full list of the state’s licensed sportsbooks and partners is available here.
FanDuel
- 2023 Adjusted EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization) for the first six months of 2023: $100+ million
- 2023 Gross Gaming Revenue (GGR – first eight months): $2.13 billion
- Number of States Where Online: 20 (including Kentucky as of Sept. 28)
- Minimum Age to Play in Kentucky: 21
FanDuel became the second online sportsbook in the nation outside Nevada when it went live in New Jersey in Sept. 2018. The first online sportsbook outside Nevada was DraftKings, which launched in New Jersey that August. The two top brands have been battling for national market share ever since – sometimes by razor-thin margins.
At the end of 2023 Q2 FanDuel was riding high with 47 percent of the US online sports betting (OSB) market share, according to an August earnings call from parent company Flutter. That growth was largely tied to account growth in Ohio and Massachusetts, both of which launched this year. Flutter officials expect the launch of FanDuel in Kentucky – combined with investment – to largely factor into the company’s earnings for the rest of 2023 and possibly into 2024.
FanDuel is partnered with Turfway Park racetrack and Newport Racing and Gaming and for mobile sports betting only in the Commonwealth.
DraftKings
- 2023 Q2 Adjusted EBITDA: $72.9 million
- 2023 GGR: $1.5 billion
- Number of States Where Online: 22 (including Kentucky as of Sept. 28)
- Minimum Age to Play in Kentucky: 18
Data reported by betting industry newsletter Earnings+More on Tuesday shows the Boston-based sportsbook is gaining on FanDuel. The data – released by Deutsche Bank – indicates that DraftKings Q3 market share stands at 36.8 percent, or half a percentage point lower than FanDuel’s 37.3 percent market share for the period.
The most striking surge for DraftKings came in August, when the app’s OSB market share grew to 40.6 percent (compared to FanDuel’s 34.4 percent for the month).
Whether or not that growth holds in the coming months remains to be seen. Industry consultants at Eilers & Krejcik Gaming, LLC reportedly told LinkedIn that the firm is not ready to update its models based on the latest data.
DraftKings is partnered with The Mint Gaming Hall Cumberland and Cumberland Run for retail and mobile sports betting.
BetMGM
- 2023 Q2 Adjusted EBITDA: Unavailable
- 2023 GGR: $387 million
- Number of States Where Online: 21 (including Kentucky as of Sept. 28)
- Minimum Age to Play in Kentucky: 21
BetMGM is undoubtedly a national leader in sports betting. It is also financially strong, according to the MGM Resorts International 2023 Q2 earnings call last month. The big news was that the company finally reached positive EBITDA and is on track for net revenue of $2 billion for the fiscal year.
What wasn’t disclosed is exactly what those earnings are for BetMGM is for Q2. But CEO and President Bill Hornbuckle is optimistic, according to the Q2 earnings call transcript in The Motley Fool. BetMGM now has about nine percent of the US OSB market share and is poised to “break through 10,” he said.
BetMGM is partnered with Sandy’s Racing and Gaming in Ashland for both retail and mobile sports betting.
Caesars Sportsbook
- 2023 Q2 Adjusted EBITDA: $11 million (Caesars Digital)
- 2023 GGR: $230 million
- Number of States Where Online: 19 (including Kentucky as of Sept. 28)
- Minimum Age to Play in Kentucky: 21
Caesars Digital – the division of Caesars Entertainment that includes Caesars Sportsbook – came out ahead in Q2 with $11 million EBITDA after lackluster prior performance, including a $69 million loss in the same period in 2022. It was the first quarter of positive adjusted EBITDA since the rebranding to Caesars Sportsbook in late 2021.
That looks good for Caesars Sportsbook as the product enters Kentucky at both the retail and online levels this month and potentially North Carolina next year. The Vegas-based sportsbook now has about 6.1 percent market share and is looking for gains.
Caesars is partnered with The Red Mile racetrack in Lexington for retail and mobile sports betting.
Penn Entertainment
- 2023 Q2 Adjusted EBITDA: $330.4 million (companywide)
- Number of States Where Online: 17 (including Kentucky as of Sept. 28)
- Minimum Age to Play in Kentucky: 21
Penn Entertainment is in the process of rebranding Barstool Sportsbook to ESPN Bet with a national rollout planned this fall that includes Kentucky. The rebrand isn’t expected to be complete until sometime in November. Barstool (with only 1.9 percent of US market share in Q3, per the Sept. 26 Earnings + More report) is still operating in the meantime and is expected to launch in the Commonwealth on Thursday.
It’s obvious that Penn is looking forward to the next phase of its US sports betting business. According to an Aug. 9 statement released by CEO and President Jay Snowden, ESPN Bet “will create a best-in-class user experience and allow us to significantly expand our digital footprint and more efficiently grow our customer database.”
Penn is partnered with Ellis Park racetrack in Henderson for mobile sports betting only.
Bet365
- 2023 Q2 Adjusted EBITDA: Unavailable
- 2023 GGR: $45.6 million
- Number of States Where Online: 6 (including Kentucky as of Sept. 28)
- Minimum Age to Play in Kentucky:18
UK-based Bet365 is new to the US market, and then again, it isn’t. The sportsbook has been around since 2019 New Jersey but waited a few years to branch out. Now the app is in six states, with Kentucky on the list.
But don’t let this relatively small competitor fool you. While Bet365 and other up-and-comers like Fanatics have only a fraction of the market share of top brands, they are definitely in it to win it. According to the Sept. 26 issue of Earnings + More: “Fanatics and bet365, in particular, pose new challenges for those at the top. This is before ESPN Bet hits the market in November.”
Bet365 is partnered with Sandy’s Racing and Gaming for mobile sports betting only.
Fanatics Sportsbook
- 2023 Q2 Adjusted EBITDA: Unavailable
- 2023 GGR: $4 million
- Number of States Where Live: 5 (including Kentucky starting Sept. 28)
- Minimum Age to Play in Kentucky: 21
Fanatics Sportsbook had been in beta testing for six months until it officially launched online on Aug. 16 in Maryland, Massachusetts, Ohio and Tennessee. Kentucky will be its fifth live state, but more is to come with its recent acquisition of PointsBet USA.
That purchase, with regulatory approval, will give the new sportsbook access to Colorado, Iowa, Kansas, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Virginia and West Virginia, with additional states in the pipeline.
“As each state closes and officially becomes part of Fanatics Betting and Gaming, customers in such states will see PointsBet rebranded to “PointsBet, a Fanatics Experience,” with additional state closings to continue throughout the year,” according to an Aug. 31 announcement by Fanatics.
Fanatics Sportsbook is partnered with Oak Grove Racing and Gaming in Oak Grove for mobile sports betting only.
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