European company Flutter, the world’s largest online betting company, also owns U.S. sports betting market leader FanDuel and has stated that FOX Bet contributed less than 3% to its total U.S. revenue figure of $3.3 billion / £2.6 billion / €3.03 billion last year.
The move to close FOX Bet comes as Flutter aims to return to profit in 2023 after reporting a $313 million / £243.4 million / €283.6 million loss in the United States for 2022. If it manages to do so, it could become the first sports betting operator in the USA to turn a profit since the federal ban on sports betting was lifted in 2018.
According to Flutter’s end of year financial report. FOX Bet and PokerStars accounted for $91 million / £70.7 million / €82.4 million of that loss. At the time Flutter CEO Peter Jackson had stated that if FOX Bet was no longer operational, he expected “between half and two-thirds of that [loss] to go away”.
The press release also reveals that Fox will retain future use of the FOX and FOX Bet brands. Fox will also continue to hold its its 2.5% stake in Flutter alongside its option to acquire 18.6% of FanDuel.
Fox originally partnered with online gambling company The Stars Group (TSG) in 2019 to launch FOX Bet. Later that year Flutter agreed a deal to acquire The Stars Group.
An experienced iGaming commentator and analyst based in New York City - Jenny reports on regulation and gambling industry news and events.