GambetDC was an unmitigated failure as the sole DC’s mobile sports betting provider, but since it was replaced by FanDuel and, ultimately, other digital sportsbooks, the sharp rise in handle and revenue has been stunning.
End of an Error
It may not come as much of a surprise that the local legislators in the heart of our nation’s capital decided to reinvent the wheel and create their own mobile sports betting platform through the Office of Lottery & Gaming’s contractor, Greek gaming company Intralot.
That manifestation turned out to be GambetDC, and it was widely unpopular due to uncompetitive odds and technical glitches that saw DC bettors flee to neighboring markets to place a bet. The city council allowed this platform to continue for nearly four years with only minor improvements. But by the time the frustration had reached a fever pitch, there was no resuscitating the abject failure that was DC’s exclusive mobile betting site.
In April, the reins were handed to industry leader, FanDuel, and the stark upgrade was immediately recognized. The handle and revenue increased markedly, and it wasn’t long before the city council voted to open the market to several mobile sports betting providers, some of which already had a limited mobile presence with Caesars at Capital One Arena and BetMGM at Audi Field.
Thus, it wasn’t until July 17th, 2024, over four years since the launch of GambetDC, that the DC market was open to multiple operators and mirrored virtually all the other mobile sports betting markets throughout the nation. The transition has had staggering success, and the promises made by Intralot through GambetDC are finally coming to fruition now that they are out of the picture.
DC Market Surges
The comparisons between what was then and what is now are jaw-dropping. It should be understood that GambetDC was the only game in town until April 15th; therefore, the first 3 ½ months of 2024 reflect the numbers produced by it. It was only after April 15th that FanDuel took over, and then the market opened to all others two months later.
To gain perspective, GambetDC generated $43.9 million in handle, which produced $4.82 million in revenue over the first eight months of 2023. Compare that to the 2½ months, from mid-April to the end of June, when FanDuel was the exclusive mobile sports betting provider throughout the District and delivered $68.5 million in accepted wagers, which generated $11.3 million in revenue.
With FanDuel as the sole District-wide sports betting provider, the handle increased 56%, while the revenues rose 134% in just one-third of the time.
Since the market opened to multiple online sportsbooks in July, here are the year-to-date figures.
- FanDuel – $52.61 million handle – $7.93 million in revenues
- Caesars – $27.93 million handle – $2.32 million in revenues
- BetMGM – $25.32 million handle – $2.24 million in revenues
- DraftKings – $8.6 million handle – $988,500 in revenues
We can see what a difference it makes when a sportsbook is established in the market, as Caesars and BetMGM were already in DC with their retail operations and limited mobile reach. DraftKings is customarily either first or second in its markets, which underscores the enormous competitive advantage it and FanDuel possessed with their DFS operations ensconced in the same markets before sports betting was launched in those respective states.
