Is Adelson family buying the Mavs the most expensive and clever lobbying play in history? Eventually dangle a fully private funded new arena in a top 5 US city in exchange for the legalization of casino gaming in Texas and build an integrated casino resort within the same complex
A thread on the sports betting and the viability of media companies trying to become operators + how to maximize value for the long-term. I say this from experience as Head of Strategy
@FanDuel
and having sold
@barstoolsports
to $Penn in the most transformative txn in the space
In January, the Dallas Morning News said Las Vegas Sands (>50% owned by Adelson) brought on 63 lobbyists for the 2023 session with a mandate to spend up to $5.9 million on trying to legalize commercial casino gaming
Thrilled to be on CNBC representing Bettor Capital this morning and talk sports betting / gaming market ahead of the Super Bowl. My ‘best bet’ was $FLTR and yes these companies will be profitable!
The sports business pundits are going to talk about the valuation, unique deal structure (with Cuban maintaining control), and other things, but it's clear to me this deal is solely about casino gaming and try to open up a massive market opportunity for Las Vegas Sands in Texas
Heck of a run by Matt King (CEO) at FanDuel to create the industry leader in online gaming in the US. I was very fortunate to meet him in early 2015 and convince him to hire me; I feel very fortunate for that opportunity as well as the ability to call him a friend and mentor
Although I left Barstool nearly three years ago after putting this structure in place, today officially closes that chapter of my career. Congrats to management and TCG on the completion of this deal
Penn has officially completed its acquisition of Barstool and now owns 100% of the brand.
They paid about $550 million in total — and considering Barstool now does ~$200 million in annual revenue, that's an incredible deal for Penn.
Congrats
@stoolpresidente
&
@erika_
!
In my year plus angel investing, this was my first "Wow, this is a pretty cool cap table to be on!" moment. Excited to see what is next for Buzzer and how sports betting activity can serve as a further catalyst for growth and utility for this awesome platform
Buzzer, a new live sports platform built on real-time notifications, has raised a $20M Series A.
Investors include:
• Michael Jordan
• Wayne Gretzky
• Patrick Mahomes
• Naomi Osaka
• Devin Booker
• Sabrina Ionescu
The round was led by Sapphire Sport & Canaan Partners.
In real-money gaming, the iGaming business is vastly underappreciated. MI in Sept is the best example:
-Retail: Casino - $107M, Sports - $4M
-Online: Casino - $102M, Sports - $24M
My biggest takeaway is that in 9 months, online casino is now just as big as retail
#amazonmoment
NEWS: Bettor Capital, the gaming venture fund launched last year by former Barstool and FanDuel exec
@Dave_VanEgmond
, has raised more than $50 million in its first fund.
Immediate reaction to
#penn
news: Paying $2B to insource your tech by buying a company that hasn’t even built everything yet is quiet something. Should be great exit premiums for our port cos!
Flutter generates ~$1.9B of EBITDA globally (ex-US). Then they own 95% of
#FanDuel
, which generates more revenue and has higher mkt share than
#DraftKings
. Yet $DKNG and Flutter have similar market cap. You're getting ~$1.9B of annual EBITDA for 'free'...makes no sense
Flutter reported 2020 results. US color below. They upped their 'TAM'... ☕️
Off to work.
Flutter Entertainment plc - 2020 Preliminary Results
Presentation
Excited to be backing the growth of women's sports
@thegistusa
by investing in this round. At Bettor Capital we also represent multiple WNBA teams to support their emerging monetization of the
#sportsbetting
category
Thrilled to be involved with Sportsgrid, Data Skrive and Boom Entertainment personally and now expanding with our investment activities at Bettor Capital
As US sportsbooks battle it out for market share, I asked 5 top investors to pick 2 startups they think are best positioned for the sector’s next phase of growth (one had to be a startup they weren’t invested in):
But if there goal and focus was casino gaming in Texas and they were aligned with Adelson, it certainly does make sense not to get tied to a sportsbook partner
1. Case Study:
A) theScore (with 4M users) has not been able to break through as a sportsbook operator (outside the Top 10, <0.1% mkt share). How is FUBO with 500k subscribers going to do it?
.....
Ponder this:
$FUBO with negative gross margins on its core biz is now trying to compete with
@DraftKings
and
@FanDuel
buying
@betvigtory
for undisclosed amount and has sub-$200 mm of cash on its balance sheet to enter sports betting
Fubo went up $1.5 billion in value today
I'm incredibly excited about the growth of the sports betting industry and technology innovation in the sector, but a B2C sportsbook has significant challenges given framework of US market. A thread...
Exciting time in real-money gaming with the big game upcoming. The business is much more than sports betting and the leaders will reach profitability. The top players already are in a mature market like New Jersey
"It depends on the state and eventually they will on a nationwide basis,"
@Dave_VanEgmond
on profitability for gambling companies. "It's almost like a marketplace model. $UBER $LYFT a lot of people had questions about those businesses for years until they reached a certain scale"
$DKNG IR strategy is interesting. First highlight is $67+B TAM (based on 100% legality in Sports & Casino...never happening unfortunately). I'm actually surprised that their 'actual' calculated TAM (later in deck) based on addressable pop % is only $30B
Plus, the Mavs were the only major sports team in Texas not to strike a sports betting partnership when there were legalization efforts. It was odd for them to sit on the sidelines and not take 'free money' from sportsbook sponsorship
It got real today at Bettor Capital. Congrats to my partner
@West_Coast_Jack
couldn’t have done it without you. Thanks to our great associate Peter. Here we come for the real-money online gaming market!
11) There seems to be a huge valuation gap on the perceived value of being a sportsbook. I firmly believe US Sports Betting & iGaming is a $50B TAM, but it doesn't really matter how big it is when you have <1% market share and can't cover your cost structure at maturity
1) If Barstool Sports, with a growing audience of 66M monthly uniques, could conclude that 'going it alone' was not viable, how does any other media company in North America (outside of ESPN who is highly unlikely to try it) think they can build a sportsbook on their own?
2) You need three things to be successful in sports betting: 1: Market Access (licenses to operator), 2: Product / Tech, and 3: Brand / Marketing Engine. Media companies only have number 3 at some scale depending on the platform
7) Investors are drastically underestimated the costs to be a 'real' player in sports betting and the path to profitability, which doesn't exist for small players. With inflated valuations, there is no one coming to acquire the business and bail out shareholders eventually
Bettor Capital is thrilled to be an investor and supporter of The Athletic in its monetization of the sports betting space. Exciting partnership and transformative step for the Company
I turn on the
#baseball
for five minutes and I see several pitches outside the strike zone box getting called strikes and impacting the results. What’s the point of the ‘zone’ graphic if not to use it. It doesn’t make sense in 2022; tennis doesn’t have umps anymore…use tech
As a Flutter shareholder, I wish this was slide 1, not slide 26, in today’s announcement. I would be screaming this from the mountain tops given $DKNG and $PENN enthusiasm
Winner winner chicken dinner! Now it’d be nice to see this reflected in Flutter stock price or all the more reason for a FanDuel listing. It should trade at a material premium to $DKNG given its leading position and superior financial profile
3) To buy the market access to cover yourself in all the big states will costs hundreds of millions of dollars over the next decade. Companies with only a few hundred million on their balance sheet can't even afford to get in the game without diluting shareholders
@RichLightShed
Wait, you're saying privately run sportsbooks perform better than gov't controlled ones. SHOCKING! All states should have open, competitive markets for
#sportsbetting
to maximize tax revenue from this exciting growth business.
In Feb 2020, DC officials projected sports betting to produce $9.6m to local government. Actual transfer? $352k, with $273k of that profit coming from the district’s only privately-operated sportsbook to launch to date, the William Hill Sportsbook 🧐
I have so many thoughts on this transaction. Been thinking about it all morning and the one conclusion I'm comfortable sharing is that I should have gotten a much bigger price for Barstool Sports! BSS > $scr. Very interesting times in the online gaming industry
9) That's 200k new sports betting customers. Industry CPAs are $200-400+. Let's take the midpoint of $300 and that leads to $60M of value....seems to be a big gap between $60M and $2+B
@Rex_Beyers
Or just have open, mobile registration like the great state of New Jersey. In 2021, you shouldn’t have to sign up for anything in-person, including a sports betting account. Chirping at you too Illinois and any other state that thinks this is good policy or beneficial to consumer
Congrats again to my friends
@bluewirepods
on their deal with Wynn Resorts. Check out my thoughts on the deal here. Excited to get back to Vegas soon to check it out and maybe even record a podcast on the convergence of sports media & betting / gaming
6) FanDuel likely acquired more new players in 10 states over the course of H2 2020 than a media company like FuboTV had on it's whole platform nationally after years of acquiring users
@AdamSchefter
@calvinwatkins
He should never ref another game in the NFL and should be fined like a player would be for egregious error.
I’d like to see him answer questions after he can watch all the video. If he or NFL don’t admit that there was a massive screw up, it’s a joke.
More interesting news on the digital sports media company side today with $SCR reporting. I continue to believe partnership with established gaming companies is the best path forward as sub-scale platforms can't compete if they try to become an operator....
Even at maturity, in a bull case, sports betting is a $30 billion NGR (net gaming revenue business) and ESPN wants at least 10% of that?!?!? Has Mickey Mouse gone Looney Tunes?
Walt Disney's ESPN is seeking to license its brand to major sports-betting companies for at least $3bn over several years,
@WSJ
reports. ESPN is aiming to capitalize on the fast-growing online gambling industry.
So many thoughts on the Penn-ESPN-Barstool situation....first and foremost feel very lucky to have gotten cashed out at the $650M valuation in Feb. Can't imagine it was sold back anywhere near that amount when nothing materially changed in the business
Watched a lot of Masters coverage this weekend across the Golf Channel (NBC Sports) and CBS. I did so from home in New Jersey, which brought about some interesting observations as it relates to
#sportsbetting
advertising....
If it's not online, it's not accessible. Only 10 states have open, competitive online markets for
#sportsbetting
(NJ, PA, IN, WV, CO, TN, IA, IL, MI, VA) representing 23.5% of the US population. Otherwise it's retail only or lottery controlled which is not the same product
Heading into the biggest sports betting event of the year...
25 states and D.C. have legalized sports betting, and 21 of those markets (plus D.C.) are live and operational.
By population, 45% of American adults live in a state where it's legal.
Sports betting is booming! As we’ve said for a year now, TAM will be bigger than everyone expects.
#BettorCapital
estimates a $50B at maturity across Sports & iGaming
Probably most telling, the company is raising its expectations for 2021. Had previous said revenue would be in $750-850M range. Now it's $900M to $1 billion.
Ep: 170 - FanDuel to Barstool to Bettor Capital with (
@Dave_VanEgmond
)
- Brand and Market Share
- Growth and Development of the US Betting Market
- Investing in the Betting Space
SC -
One former FanDuel exec had the vision and made the sales pitch...congrats to Barstool & Penn on all the success thus far. More to come from
#BettorCapital
Both
@FanDuel
and
@DraftKings
passed at far lower valuations to be honest. Much like Cherin $penn was only company with vision and leadership to see our potential at the time.
Digital sports media and sports betting are converging. At Bettor Capital, we’re excited to back a number of emerging content platform which will be prime targets for partnerships or deeper strategic alignment with betting operators
7) Congrats to all involved bringing legal sports betting to New York state. It was long overdue and it will be a huge catalyst to continued growth for the industry. Now let's get the tax rate to a more reasonable rate and add iGaming later this decade
Today, we are announcing our $2M pre-seed round and the launch of
@1v1Me
.
Thankful for everyone who took a bet on us so far and the team we've built.
A lot of gas in the tank with a ton to do. We are just getting started 🚀💪
It’d be like needing to go to Walmart to sign up to order your groceries online…just archaic insanity. Open, competitive, online markets with reasonable tax rates are the way forward to maximize the total opportunity
#sportsbetting
There are two states with mobile sports betting that require a casino visit to open an account. In March, Illinois will drop that requirement, leaving only Nevada. This is my op-ed
@TheNVIndy
about why I think that should change.
Sign you’re getting old: betting only first halfs in prime time games because you know you’re going to bed and can’t have the temptation to stay up.
#sportsbetting
13) Nothing personal against FuboTV and theScore. There are good people at these companies trying their best to compete, but they're pushing a boulder uphill while investors think they're on the mountain top rolling down to a huge pot of gold
2. Case Study (cont'd):
b) Leading sportsbooks will pay ~$200+ per user. If FUBO converted every single user on their platform nationally (even though online sports betting is in only ~20% of the USA today for 21+ audience), that is ONLY $100M.
5) No matter how big the media platform, unless you're Barstool Sports or ESPN, you're going to need to spend advertising $ on customer acquisition in a highly competitive market. FanDuel & DraftKings are acquiring hundreds of thousands of players per quarter in only 10 states
FanDuel is on a different scale to our competitors. We are the clear
#1
operator and exceeded $500m revenue in Q2. We expect to generate $1.8-$2bn in revenue in 2021 and expect Flutter US to generate positive EBITDA in 2023, based on expectations of future state openings.
Should we prohibit the consumption of alcohol or tobacco on college campuses as well for those of legal age? Let’s geofence Uber Eats for alcohol delivery for colleges so no one can excessively drink….
Maryland bill would geofence college campuses to prevent access to on-campus online sports betting. Interesting given what happened during the Iowa probe (h/t
@HeatherReporter
)
Let's go! Can't wait to see this studio come to life. Very excited to hear the stories and content coming from
#BlueWire
in this partnership. Sports, gaming and lifestyle will continue to converge
Congrats to Lou, Jeremy,
@adamikaplan
and many other great execs on the SG team who made this happen and are changing the game in sports betting
#winningtogether
.
@BetMGM
recently announced a tie-up with
@SportsGrid
It is the latest indication content & distribution will play an increasingly important role within sports betting businesses as operators scale back their marketing efforts and focus on profitability
Michigan: iGaming GGR of $122M in Dec'21. Brick & mortar GGR of $111M. After launching online casino 12 months ago, it now accounts for >52% of the total casino market in the state. Calling other states who have established commercial casinos and need additional tax revenue...
4) Product and tech is going to be outsourced. Quasi-tech media companies like theScore are not building their sports betting engine. It's too hard and they are reliant on third parties who will be prioritizing bigger customers who may ultimately acquire them leaving a big gap
Make Michigan the
#1
seed, Bama (2), Cincy (3) and
#NotreDame
(4). It’d be a TV ratings bonanza for the 1-4 semi. Follow the money and dump the SEC bias!
The bid to supply to NH Lottery, may have forever changed the outlook for the US sports betting industry. A tax rate/rev share to the state of 50% was set. New York used that as precedent and now Arkansas & Hawaii trying to follow. Not ideal for the
#sportsbetting
industry
I enjoy watching the
#golf
channel around majors, but having a discussion of the merits of Brooks not making the Ryder Cup team because he took the money and went to LIV is ridiculous. He’s an all-time great and should be able to represent the USA and will be valuable to the team
Great stuff on
@thegistusa
. Proud to be an investor as they expand to serve the underserved sports fan (both female and male). And maybe we’ll bring a new audience to
#sportsbetting
and start monetizing that major new advertising category in the process
SPIN SPIN SPIN! Makes too much sense not to.
@FanDuel
the number 1 player should not trade at a significant discount to $DKNG Give investors what they want
NEW: PrizePicks announces it will use XPoint to provide geolocation security for its daily fantasy sports platform, which is available in 31 states + DC.
Stadium Swim is super cool and I loved my visit, but outside, it's not a sportsbook. It's a club to watch sports. There are a few kiosks near the blackjack tables, no windows and no mobile activation. Easier to order bottle service than make a bet. Amazing spot to watch a game
The convergence of sports media and sports betting got me thinking, has the Worldwide Leader in Sports
#ESPN
missed the party, even though it’s early in state by state rollout? A thread…
@RichLightShed
Why do you have to travel to Kentucky to wager? Let’s bring sports betting to Texans! Hopefully most states will have the opportunity online sooner rather than later
A beautiful day with Heidi at the
#KentuckyDerby
In 2017, Caroline (then age 9) had us put $2 on Always Dreaming, and she won (her very first bet)!!
This year, alas, our wagers missed....
But a great time nonetheless!
@darrenrovell
@phkeane
Why would a book not take? What gives you carte blanche to be definitive? Did books not take $2M bet on NFL futures at > +2000 for Mattress Mack. The largest books in the world with billions of liquidity may take the action given the high hold on golf outrights
#sportsbetting
David VanEgmond is "the current Head of Strategy & Corporate Development at Barstool Sports and former Head of Strategy at the FanDuel Group"
Interesting appointment.
BETSPERTS Completes Seed Round and Names David VanEgmond to Board of Directors
@novy_williams
@MLS
I'm old enough to remember when things got very frothy in daily fantasy in 2016....FanDuel & DraftKings had to restructure a lot of team sponsorship deals. Hopefully for teams, they find good partners for the long-term
Throwing this into the ethos: The blurring of the line between "daily fantasy sports" and sports betting that started with DraftKings/FanDuel is now a large growing segment of prop betting on player performances, relying on UIGEA for legality. It feels like a reckoning is coming.
Exciting news out of Bettor Capital this morning. We're thrilled to be accelerating our investing into compelling businesses like Data Skrive, servicing the real-money online gaming end market
iGaming +145% and Sports Betting +306%. CT went live for both last month, FL went live for online sports betting this month and NY + LA and potentially others for online sports betting in Q1 2021. Exciting times for the real money gaming industry. Plus iLottery in hyper growth!
🚨 NEW: Commercial gaming revenue hit an all-time quarterly high in Q3 2021, reaching $13.89B.
The total marks the second consecutive quarter of record commercial gaming revenue and puts the industry on pace to smash its annual revenue record.
Release:
Why reinvent the wheel? It’s so silly that this takes so long…government bureaucracy at its finest. If you can accept retail with operators in 10+ other states, why do you need another nine months to get online live? Explain why
@FDSportsbook
can take a retail bet but not online
"Those of us on the inside who are looking at it objectively realize that it would be nice to aim for football season of 2022, September..." -- John Martin, director of the Maryland Lottery
Mobile betting in Maryland still pretty far off
If you’re wondering the state of the
#sportsbetting
landscape (by state). In 2018, it was just NJ in green and in four more years, we’ll see a majority of the US have open online sports betting!
Congrats
@ClayTravis
and Sam Savage! It was great to play a small part in your growth around the sports betting category. More to come over the next several years as sports media, betting and content converge
“Consistent third” for four months. January share declines by 220bps. Will be interested to see if that’s a blip on the radar or sign of BetMGMs rise in PA since they only launched in Dec. Very odd to see the decline given volume of marketing with Barstool Sportsbook launch in MI