Report: DraftKings scaling back headline NFL promotion after $75m in payouts
Online and land-based operator to halt ‘Up 10, Early Win’ promo following costly first two weeks of season
DraftKings is scaling back the headline NFL promotion it was running to begin the 2022 season after paying out $75m to customers, according to Action Network.
The promo, titled ‘Up 10, Early Win,’ enabled anyone who made a moneyline wager on a Sunday or Monday NFL game to automatically win their bet if their team took a 10-point lead at any point in the contest.
DraftKings used a similar mechanic for the season’s first two Thursday Night Football games, but it was even more player-friendly as it only required a seven-point lead to cash a moneyline bet.
Between the first two weeks combined, DraftKings paid out both moneylines on seven different occasions – or just under 22% of all games. That included four ‘double winners’ from Week 2.
Under the terms of the promotion, users could opt in and wager as high as $500 on the moneyline of each game, with the average maximum allowable bet in the $50-$100 range.
The offer proved potentially more costly than anticipated, as DraftKings will not be continuing it for Week 3, according to Better Collective-owned Action Network.
The ‘Up 7, Early Win’ version, however, will be available for the Thursday’s night Week 3 opener between the Steelers and Browns.
It’s unknown if the promo will continue for future Thursday Night Football games, nor is it known whether the hiatus of the ‘Up 10, Early Win’ will become permanent.
While the offer was especially aggressive, it nonetheless underscored what is slowly becoming a greater industry shift from acquisition to retention.
The massive signup bonuses that were ubiquitous as recently as a year ago have started to wane.
Taking their place are offers geared more toward keeping existing users on an operator’s platform, with DraftKings clearly making the biggest splash to date in that respect.