70,000 Bets a Minute: How FanDuel’s Parent Is Winning at Sports Gambling
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What are the key trends in the online betting industry?
During this year's Super Bowl, gambling company FanDuel was winning big, 70,000 bets a minute big. And today we're bringing you Tim and Christopher's conversation with Peter Jackson, the CEO of FanDuel's parent company, Flutter. What does the man at the top have to say about one of the most profitable entertainment industries in the world and how technology is supercharging it?
Tim, I think this week's episode is one of the most interesting we've done yet. And tons of new listeners are going to tune in for the first time ever. Oh, yeah? Want to bet? Funny you should mention. This week's guest is the CEO of the company behind FanDuel, the biggest U.S. company in sports betting by revenue. Even if you don't care about sports, his industry is transforming the U.S.
How did FanDuel achieve 70,000 bets a minute?
Right. It was estimated that Americans would wager roughly $1.4 billion on the Super Bowl this year. And he told us FanDuel customers made about 70,000 bets a minute during the big game. The sports betting industry is big, and it's growing like crazy. And so are the consequences of getting millions of Americans hooked on gambling anytime, anywhere. That's next. For a lot of the companies we cover, first quarter is a bit of a lull. But if you're a gambler, there's no better time of the year. And if you're a sports betting company, it's also one of the busiest times of the year. The American Gaming Association estimated that Americans wagered about $1.4 billion on the Super Bowl this year. And then there was March Madness, which was twice that, $3.1 billion. There are a lot of different things to bet on these days, and making sure the house always wins is a huge technological problem for online sports betting giant Flutter and its CEO, Peter Jackson.
You think about like the Super Bowl with all those different players and all the different stats available. We have to be constantly assessing what we think the probabilities are of events happening. And then we turn those probabilities into prices, have them available on our site. And at peak, you know, 70,000 bets a minute coming through the platform with, you know, you can imagine millions of customers looking and assessing prices in between that as well.
What role does technology play in sports betting?
The stock market has been all over the place since January. But in recent years, FanDuel's parent company, Flutter, has performed more like a tech company. There's some irony in the fact that the best way to make money on FanDuel might be to skip the app and buy the stock. I've been absolutely delighted with the way that the team have built the business in the US with Fanjul. And if you look at the projections, we actually are talking about a $70 billion total addressable market in the medium term across the US and Canada. The story of Flutter is the story of a whole new multi-billion dollar vice coming out of the bookie's notebook and into a place where it can be taxed and regulated. And no one has a better understanding of the odds of what's coming next than Jackson. From The Wall Street Journal, I'm Tim Higgins.
How is Flutter Entertainment positioned in the market?
And I'm Christopher Mims. This is Bold Names, where you'll hear from the leaders of the bold-named companies featured in the pages of The Wall Street Journal. Today we ask, how is Flutter capitalizing on the rapid rise of legalized online gambling in the U.S.? Is the sports betting boom sustainable? And is it really all just good, clean fun? Or are states opening the gates to potential harms?
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Chapters
8 chapters
1
What are the key trends in the online betting industry?
0:57–1:45
2
How did FanDuel achieve 70,000 bets a minute?
1:45–3:18
3
What role does technology play in sports betting?
3:18–4:08
4
How is Flutter Entertainment positioned in the market?
4:08–6:53
5
What is the future outlook for the sports betting market?
6:53–11:47
6
How does Flutter create engaging user experiences?
11:47–16:57
7
What are the entertainment aspects of betting?
16:57–19:15
8
How do social media trends influence betting behavior?
19:15–32:16