FanDuel has long been the market leader for sports betting, not only in West Virginia, but nationally, too. The operator is attempting to improve its standing in the online casino market.
FanDuel is behind competitors such as DraftKings and BetMGM. However, recent data has suggested that FanDuel is beginning to catch up, and is becoming a formidable presence among West Virginia online casinos.
FanDuel’s improvements in West Virginia online casino market
FanDuel WV Casino has made some headlines over the summer and carried them into the fall. According to Eilers & Krejcik’s weekly newsletter, The EKG Line, FanDuel recorded 90,000 casino downloads in August, more than DraftKings (81,000) and just behind BetMGM (95,000). The large amounts of downloads helped FanDuel achieve around 21% in national online casino market share in August, its best ever.
The West Virginia Lottery does not break down online casino revenue by operator, so it’s difficult to see exactly where FanDuel stands in the Mountain State. FanDuel, BetMGM and Golden Nugget are partnered with The Greenbrier license. The trio of apps have led the market in revenue since each entered.
Here is where The Greenbrier stands in June, July and August revenue compared to the other three licensees:
- The Greenbrier (FanDuel WV Casino, BetMGM WV Casino, Golden Nugget WV Casino): $16.1 million
- Hollywood Charles Town (DraftKings WV Casino, PointsBet WV Casino, Barstool WV Casino): $12.5 million
- Mountaineer (Caesars WV Casino, BetRivers WV Casino): $5.5 million
- Mardi Gras (Betly WV Casino): $1.1 million
It appears that FanDuel is holding its own in the Mountain State, and then some.
The operator has already gotten off to a strong start in Q3 2023, as The EKG Line reported that FanDuel’s online casino has generated 600,000 impressions. DraftKings and BetMGM combined for 145,000 impressions, so far.
Product quality remains challenge for FanDuel WV Casino
FanDuel’s product is going to be the determining factor in the platform’s success level, The EKG Line said. FanDuel has some stiff competition in that regard. DraftKings CEO Jason Robins boasted about his company’s offering during a Q2 2023 earnings call:
“The product is so much better year-over-year from where it was last year. And as I said earlier, I feel like in the back half of the year, we’re going to have the best product in the market.”
DraftKings’ platform is one of the key reasons it sits atop the online casino market share chain.
The EKG Line said this about FanDuel’s app in an email to subscribers:
“In our just-published 2H23 casino app performance analysis, we found that the FanDuel app scored well with our national tester group but was still behind the top apps, with testers marking it down for game crashes and slow loading times.”
Despite some hiccups, The EKG Line still ranks FanDuel in a “podium position” among online casino apps. Once improved, FanDuel can easily contend for the top spot for West Virginia online casinos soon enough.
