The international (and somewhat controversial) gaming company International Game Technology (IGT) has been able to convince FanDuel that it is squeaky clean and deserves to help the company take its operations to a new level. IGT announced yesterday that it had secured a lucrative deal with FanDuel that will see it become the latter’s sports gambling and iGaming platform provider for all its retail sportsbook properties for the next four years.
Going forward, IGT’s PlaySports platform will be used to run all of FanDuel’s existing sportsbooks across the US, as well as any that it launches within the next four years – longer if the arrangement is renewed or if another coronavirus pandemic doesn’t wipe out gaming completely. This means that IGT will be found at FanDuel’s sportsbook at the Meadowlands racetrack in New Jersey, as well as at other properties in Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Mississippi, New York, Pennsylvania and West Virginia. In addition, with the PlayCasino games it has developed through its PlayDigital arm, IGT will provide iGaming content to all of FanDuel’s online casinos, which are currently up and running in Colorado, Indiana, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and West Virginia. It will also install over 200 PlaySports self-service kiosks in FanDuel sportsbooks across the country.
IGT PlayDigital Senior VP Enrico Drago says of the new arrangement, “IGT’s multi-faceted, multi-year PlaySports platform technology and igaming content agreement with FanDuel Group pairs the leading content and B2B sports betting provider with one of America’s most respected sports betting operators to propel an already winning partnership to new levels and create an abundance of opportunity for both parties.
“IGT and FanDuel Group are positioned for continued success in the US and we are committed to fueling FanDuel Sportsbooks’ sustained growth through our proven, market-ready platform, player-preferred game content and self-service betting technologies.”
FanDuel has its roots in daily fantasy sports, but the May 2018 repeal of PASPA, the federal law that made sports gambling illegal almost everywhere but Nevada, paved the way for a growth explosion. That was made easier when the company was purchased by Paddy Power Betfair (which later was rebranded Flutter Entertainment) a month after the repeal, and FanDuel has been busy taking the country by storm ever since.
The company’s CEO, Matt King, is always ready to take things to the next level, explaining in the press release, “IGT’s PlaySports platform has been integral to FanDuel Sportsbook’s expansion in the US, as we currently leverage it to power America’s #1 Sportsbook.
“IGT is the strategic partner that we will lean on to help us expand our retail footprint across the US. IGT’s PlaySports platform enables us to create an intuitive, technologically driven customer experience at our world-class retail sportsbooks for our customers, while its PlayCasino content enables FanDuel to deliver premium mobile casino entertainment in new and existing markets.”
