DraftKings poised for Q4 UK launch
Daily fantasy sports operator to enter the UK market by the end of the year, will pool liquidity with its US player base
Daily fantasy sports (DFS) operator DraftKings says it expects to launch in the UK by the end of the year. [private]
The Boston-based firm, which plans to open a London HQ, will pool liquidity between its players in the UK and the US to allow it to offer the same multi-million pound prize funds.
Jeffrey Haas, who joined DraftKings as chief international officer in August, told eGR North America this morning that he was âconfidentâ of meeting the Q4 launch deadline.
Haas is currently overseeing the recruitment of more than 20 positions at the firmâs UK office including in CRM, communications, analytics, compliance, and business development and corporate partnerships, after the firm received a licence from the UK Gambling Commission.
In July, eGR NA exclusively revealed that Haas quit his role at bwin.party after less than two years having overseen the operatorâs launch in the newly-regulated New Jersey market and an overhaul of the partypoker product.
At the time, Haas said DraftKings was well-poised for international growth and that he was âexcitedâ to be leading their expansion efforts.
The news comes after DraftKings announced it would expand its product offering to include eSports, which continues to gain popularity in the US and around the world.
While an official go-live date has yet to be set, DraftKings said it would offer contents on games such as League of Legends, Dota 2, Country-Strike, and SMITE.
Offering daily fantasy contents on eSports is nothing new, with the likes of Vulcun and Alpha Draft already live, with Unikrn offers real-money and social bets on games.
But DraftKings becomes the first of the major DFS operator to expand into the market.