Caesars Entertainment has signed an agreement with daily fantasy sports giant DraftKings—which now also offers sports betting and online casino games—to allow the company to access Caesars’ market in certain yet unidentified states.
Which markets DraftKings can enter is contingent on state’s passing applicable laws to allow sports betting and online wagering.
DraftKings will then promote Caesars Entertainment as its official casino-resort partner in those states, and Caesars will acquire an equity in DraftKings. The deal allows Caesars to continue offering their own branded sports betting and online casino apps in each of these jurisdictions.
The deal is the third involving a casino company acquiring a stake in a sportsbook company since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned a federal ban on sports betting last year. In August Boyd Gaming Corp. acquired a 4 percent stake in rival DFS company FanDuel while Eldorado Resorts acquired 20 percent in William Hill U.S.
Caesars, however, has not said how much of a stake it will acquire in DraftKings. Caesars will also receive a share of the revenue that DraftKings generates in states where the partnership is in place.
DraftKings is currently the leading online sportsbook in New Jersey through a partnership with Resorts Atlantic City. It also operates a live sportsbook in Mississippi. Along with the other DFS company, FanDuel, DraftKings controls 80 percent of New Jersey’s sports betting market.
Caesars currently has casinos in 13 states, including New Jersey, but the deal will not apply to New Jersey or neighboring Pennsylvania, where Caesars also has casino properties. Caesars officials said the company will launch its own brand in Pennsylvania, which has just begun to see sportsbooks go online.
Caesars said in a press release it does plan to operate a suite of online gambling products alongside DraftKings in other markets that permit multiple points of entry.
Mark Frissora, president and CEO of Caesars Entertainment, said in the release that the deal should create new revenue with sports-themed guest experiences at the casino giant’s resorts across the country.
“Caesars’ agreement with DraftKings, their first multi-state partnership, brings together the established leaders in gaming, daily fantasy sports and sports betting to provide customers more options,” he said. “This alliance is the latest initiative by Caesars to capitalize on our database, generate a new revenue stream in a growth market and raise our profile in sports, in part by creating new sports-themed guest experiences at our resorts across the country.”
