Horse-racing and casino operator Churchill Downs Incorporated (CDI) has signed a content and sponsorship agreement with Flutter-owned FanDuel.
The multi-year deal involves multiple areas of FanDuel’s business – including its sports wagering, advance deposits wagering (ADW) and television verticals. Under the terms of the deal, CDI will provide B2B technology and services for FanDuel’s sportsbook’s pari-mutual wagers on horse racing features.
It will also be possible for US-based FanDuel users to place bets on horse racing content at a CDI property, as well as allow FanDuel access to broadcast CDI content on the operator’s newly announced television network. The deal also has provisions providing FanDuel with non-exclusive Kentucky Derby sponsorship rights.
CDI subsidiary, United Tote, will be paid by FanDuel to facilitate the pari-mutual wagering sections of the agreement. CDI has previously entered into an agreement to sell 49% of United Tote to the New York Race Association, in a deal expected to complete before the start of the new year.
FanDuel CEO Amy Howe hailed the agreement, pointing to the potential to further integrate the business’s product offering:
“With the launch of FanDuel TV last week and the upcoming integration of premier racing content into our market-leading sports book, we believe this is an inflection point in our ability to offer our customers a seamless wagering experience with a single wallet.”
“We are especially pleased that we will be able to offer wagering on the most exciting two minutes in sports, the Kentucky Derby, and that we will have exclusive broadcast rights to the Churchill Downs Incorporated family of tracks on FanDuel TV. We look forward to creating new audiences for horse racing,” she said.
CDI CEO Bill Carstanjen added: “We look forward to working with FanDuel to deliver premium horse racing content to their expansive base of sports wagering customers.”
“We are confident that FanDuel’s market approach teamed with our expertise and technology will seamlessly deliver horse racing content and pari-mutuel wagering solutions to a significant number of new fans.”
Next step forward
During the company’s Q2 earnings call in July, CDI announced the intention to transform its TwinSpires betting platform into a purely B2B offering for sportsbooks wishing to add a horse-racing vertical.
“Given our expertise and extensive knowledge of pari-mutuel wagering on horse racing, we have the technical expertise, access to racing content and technology to seamlessly integrate pari-mutuel wagering into existing third-party online sports wagering platforms,” Carstanjen said during the call.
In the previous quarter, CDI had stated it was to abandon its online sports betting and gaming business, citing the competitive nature of the space.