FanDuel NBA Partnerships: 13 More Teams Added
FanDuel announced earlier today that it has finalized agreements to be the exclusive sponsor of 13 NBA teams. Some of these teams have already partnered with FanDuel in the past, but today’s FanDuel NBA partnerships are all multi-year deals.
Combined with earlier partnership agreements, FanDuel is now the exclusive partner of nearly half of NBA teams. Previous agreements include partnerships with the Lakers, Knicks, Nets, Magic, Mavericks and Bulls. FanDuel is also partnered with the NBA itself, although the league partnership is not exclusive and competing sites may still join forces with teams that FanDuel has yet to capture.
Bet $5 Get $150FanDuel Promo Code: Not NeededTerms ApplyAs of today, FanDuel is now officially partnered with:
- Atlanta Hawks
- Brooklyn Nets
- Charlotte Hornets
- Chicago Bulls
- Cleveland Cavaliers
- Dallas Mavericks
- Detroit Pistons
- Indiana Pacers
- Memphis Grizzlies
- Miami Heat
- Milwaukee Bucks
- Orlando Magic
- Utah Jazz
This is just the latest move in a trend marked by FanDuel courting the professional sports league with the friendliest attitude towards online betting. NBA Commissioner Adam Silver has gone on the record several times with public statements in support of legalizing betting on sports. Although there’s a clear legal distinction between traditional betting and fantasy sports, it makes sense that FanDuel would seek a close relationship with the NBA moving forward.
Competition in the daily fantasy sports industry continues to heat up despite none of the major players in the space even reporting a profit yet. We’re still very much in the early days of online fantasy with plenty of professional sports teams and leagues untapped to this day. As the industry matures and new signups slow, it will be interesting to see if the major fantasy sites turn their focus towards turning a profit off competitions or if they seek buyouts or other agreements with sports leagues that see the increased fan interest as a byproduct of fantasy sports.
CEO Nigel Eccles hinted at this second possibility in a statement included in today’s press release. In part, he said “we’re going to keep partnering with franchises that recognize FanDuel’s ability to keep fans in their seat with their eyes glued to every game because they have a player on their fantasy team that night.”
Specific details have yet to be released, but we can make educated guesses as to how these will look based on previous partnerships. Past agreements have given FanDuel the exclusive rights to display its name in arenas, on team websites, social media accounts and so on. In return, sports teams have been given special treatment on FanDuel’s website in the form of sponsored contests.
One thing you can expect to see as a FanDuel DFS customer is an increase in special contests with unique prizes. You will probably see more contests in which you can win tickets to games, VIP trips to team events, basketball merchandise and other prizes along those lines. In short, the announcement is great news for fantasy basketball fans.
The Battle Continues
Both FanDuel and DraftKings have been duking it out this past year to achieve dominance in the DFS market. Each site has announced multiple partnerships with individual teams, leagues and media companies. The partnerships announced today add to FanDuel’s existing partnerships with 16 NFL teams.
Meanwhile, DraftKings has been courting the MLB and NHL, with partnerships with both leagues already signed. It wasn’t long ago that Disney itself invested $250 million into DraftKings. DraftKings also has deals with the UFC and WSOP.
Wes Burns has more than a decade’s worth of experience as a writer, researcher and analyst in the legal gambling industry and is co-founder of BettingUSA.com. As a former professional online poker player, Wes approaches his work from the viewpoint of players.
