FanDuel to Focus On Responsible Gaming, Horse Racing Fans With Launch of Mobile App in Kentucky

FanDuel Sportsbook — currently the largest sportsbook operator in the United States — is projected to be one of the most highly anticipated mobile apps to launch in the Kentucky sports betting market. FanDuel has had a presence in the state with its horse racing app FanDuel Racing and daily fantasy sports platform before its full sportsbook launch.

FanDuel General Manager Karol Corcoran spoke to LINEUPS.com to speak about what the sportsbook will offer to the Kentucky sports betting industry, the teams that will attract the most wagers, the platform’s legal betting age of 21+, and FanDuel’s ongoing commitment to responsible gaming.

What Makes FanDuel Kentucky Unique

Karol Corcoran: We’re excited to bring our market-leading product to the sports fans of Kentucky. We’re rightly very proud of the performance we’ve enjoyed in all the states that we’ve launched so far.

We are America’s #1 sportsbook. We believe that we have the strongest product. So what Kentucky sports fans should expect is a product that’s easy to sign up with, that’s fun to use, that’s intuitive, that has great promotions.

One of the things we’re very excited about is how we’re the only sportsbook where customers can wager both on sports and also on horse racing using the same account wallet from our sportsbook app.

So we had thousands of users bet on the Kentucky Derby, we’ve got a great partnership with Churchill Downs, and we’re looking forward to offering something that’s very different from the other operators.

FanDuel TV And Same-Game Parlays

Karol Corcoran: With a lot of people who already enjoy FanDuel TV. It has obviously great horse racing content, it’s building its sports betting content as we speak, and some of the talent there like Britney Eurton are hopefully household names for a lot of customers in Kentucky. So we do think that enriches our proposition.

What we’re also very proud of is the depth of our product. And we worked very hard behind the scenes to make our sports betting product easy and accessible.

The best example of that is our same-game parlay product. We were the first to bring same-game parlays to the U.S. We brought Same-Game Parlay+ where you can combine same-game parlays from different games. We now have live same-game parlays. And that makes it easy for customers to bet on their favorite players in one game or across several games.

And we’ve seen huge popularity with that product, where customers are wagering quite a small amount, but have three or four legs in the game, see them tick green, then get the chance at a big payout. We have, I’d say, the best same-game parlay product in the market, and we’re looking to see how that resonates with the people in Kentucky.

Most Popular Kentucky Sports Betting Events

Karol Corcoran: We see customers who are new to sports betting and it’s NFL in particular that attracts them. I think that will be a very popular sport to bet on.

I know college football and college sports, especially basketball, are very popular in Kentucky. And I’m looking forward to college basketball season starting in November. I think we’ll see a lot of action on the Kentucky Wildcats this Saturday when they’re playing Florida.

I’m expecting the Bengals and the Reds, the Reds in particular we have a partnership with, those will be popular teams, and their big events will attract lots of handle. And we’re also less than a month away from the NBA. We’re looking forward to seeing what’s the most popular event this weekend.

FanDuel Kentucky’s 21+ Age Requirement

Karol Corcoran: We made the call that we wanted to keep it in line with our other online states. So that’s the position we’re taking in Kentucky.

I know other operators are taking a different position, but we’re happy with our decision to offer it to 21+ in line with what we do in our 19 other online states.

FanDuel Racing Users Transitioning To The Sportsbook

Karol Corcoran: These customers are used to our brand, and the look and feel of our product in particular. So that should make it easy and intuitive for them to extend their activity to sports betting.

I think the most powerful thing is that they don’t need to sign up again. They can just log in with the credentials they already have and if they have a balance from their racing wagers, it will be there to be used on sports betting. So there’s even less friction for them to begin their sports betting journey with FanDuel.

We’ve seen in previous states, when customers are active on our daily fantasy sports platform, they tend to be active on the sportsbook side at a higher rate. And we expect that will be the case in Kentucky both for fantasy and for racing.

FanDuel Responsible Gaming

Karol Corcoran: Responsible gaming is front and center of what we do at FanDuel and it’s there every day, not just for a new state launch. We’re fortunate that we’re a member of the Flutter Group, so we have access to brands and talent who have years of responsible gaming experience and we’re leveraging that to enrich our responsible gaming policies.

We want to build a sustainable business, and you only achieve that if you take responsible gaming seriously. And, as market leader, we need to lead the category. And we’re doing that through the resources we make available to customers, the responsible gaming tools like deposit limits, wager limits, etc. And as a leading operator, we are signatories to the AGA’s Marketing Code.

To summarize, I think it’s crucial for not just FanDuel but all operators to take this very seriously and put it front and foremost in our strategy. And we’re doing that at FanDuel not just in Kentucky, but in all the states we operate.

Other Memorable FanDuel State Launches

Karol Corcoran: Everyone probably has their own favorite state launch. This year, I think Ohio on the first of January, really started our year off very strong, I think Ohio was probably the strongest new state launch we ever had.

I suspect we had some Kentucky residents cross the border and place their first wager with FanDuel in Ohio and we’re looking forward to servicing them from their couch in Kentucky.

On a personal level, we’re based in New York, so the launch in New York was a very memorable one for us.

Really all state launches are exciting and energizing. Kentucky is our 20th online, but the excitement and the thrill doesn’t wear off.