DraftKings CEO Jason Robins’ plan of expanding his business to Australia is no longer a fantasy.
Australian state regulator Northern Territory Racing Commission has given U.S.-based daily fantasy sports (DFS) operator DraftKings the go signal to offer fantasy sports in Australia, the Digital Journal reported on Tuesday.
The DFS operator is planning to offer DFS contests to Australian consumers in the second quarter of 2018.
Australia will go down in DraftKings’ history book as the first country outside of North America and Europe where the DFS operator will operate. Australia is the eighth country where DFS fans could access DraftKings’ offerings. Aside from the U.S. and Australia, DraftKings operates in the UK, Ireland, Germany, Austria, Malta, and Canada.
There’s a potential growth story for DraftKings in Australia, given its approximately 1.65 million traditional fantasy sports players, according to Robins. He described these traditional fantasy players as “sophisticated” and “tech-savvy” with a flare for competing with other sports fans.
“Within the last few years, Australia’s burgeoning fantasy sports market has dramatically evolved, adding a variety of daily fantasy sports platforms, feeding the appetite of the many passionate sports fans who love getting closer to the teams, athletes and sports they love,” Robins said in a statement.
However, DraftKings’ expansion to Australia comes at a challenging time when the government introduced regulatory changes that prompted several gambling companies to rethink their operations in the land down under.
In March, British bookmaker William Hill sold its Australian unit to Melbourne-based CrownBet after the government imposed a ban on credit betting in the country.
