Fanatics Gaming has been granted a mobile license by Arizona sports betting regulators.
Fanatics Betting and Gaming, a company based in New York, is poised to enter the Arizona sports betting market as the new mobile partner for the Tonto Apache Tribe, replacing TwinSpires.
When the Arizona Department of Gaming opened the window for applications on Jan. 16, Fanatics was the sole recipient of an Arizona betting apps license. The deadline for applications was March 4.
Fanatics will soon expand into its 17th state, Arizona, joining a list of others including Colorado, Connecticut, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Vermont, Virginia, and West Virginia.
On January 16, 2024, the Arizona Department of Gaming (ADG) announced that they would be accepting applications for event wagering licenses, with specific allocations for Arizona Tribes and Sports Franchises. Following this announcement, ADG granted an event wagering operator license to Fanatics Betting and Gaming on behalf of Tonto Apache Sports Betting, a group affiliated with the Tonto Apache Tribe, in compliance with state laws.
TwinSpires announced the closure of its national online sportsbook operation in the summer of 2022, but continued its partnership with the Tonto Apache until December 2023.
Arizona sports betting is currently going through a period of significant change.
In August of last year, the ADG approved a license for bet365 Arizona to operate in partnership with the Ak-Chin Indian Community. bet365 launched its operations in Arizona just last month.
In October 2022, Fubo Sportsbook, the initial online affiliate of the Ak-Chin, ceased operations. The Ak-Chin now operate Harrah’s Ak-Chin Hotel and Casino, which hosts a Caesars Sportsbook retail site. The license for the Caesars Sportsbook Arizona betting application is secured through a collaboration with the Arizona Diamondbacks.
Since the licensing window opened in August, three of the original 10 tribal license holders in the state have had their betting partners announce closures: WynnBET with the San Carlos Apache, TwinSpires with the Tonto Apache, and Unibet with the Quechuan Tribe. Arizona has the ability to issue 10 tribal licenses and 10 licenses through professional sports teams, but only eight of the 10 pro sports licenses were ever filled.
The Phoenix Rising USL team was denied a license in the state’s first licensing window in August 2021 but informed yengols.com in January of their plan to submit a bid in the next window. However, only one license was announced by the ADG on Friday. When the ADG reopened applications in August 2023, the club explained that their betting partner was unable to complete their application in time.
The impact of Fanatics on the Arizona market.
Fanatics Betting & Gaming, a subsidiary of the sports apparel giant founded by Michael Rubin in 2011, began as a small online company and expanded to become a $3.4 billion corporation.
Fanatics Betting & Gaming, a New York-based company, debuted its sports betting division in January 2023 with the opening of its inaugural retail sportsbook at FedEx Field in the suburbs of D.C. The company also made its first foray into mobile sports betting during the same year.
Fanatics Sportsbook Arizona has been selected as the Tonto Apache Tribe’s new online sports betting partner, taking over from TwinSpires by Churchill Downs. TwinSpires, which operated for 28 months, was able to generate a wagering handle of over $14 million in Arizona.
A representative from the Tonto Apache Tribe told yengols.com that they will be moving from the now-defunct TwinSpires brand to Fanatics. They shared their excitement for the upcoming collaboration with Fanatics Betting & Gaming in an email.
Brendan Bussmann, managing partner at B Global Advisors, believes that Fanatics’ move into the Arizona sports betting market, which has seen over $14 billion in wagers since its 2021 launch, will help the company grow nationally.
Bussmann announced that one of the tribes has been granted permission to partner with Fanatics in their nationwide expansion, ensuring top-tier status. He highlighted Arizona’s strong market and the advantages of having all major sports betting operators in the state.
I think we have hit the limit on possible partnerships between the tribes and team licenses. It’s unfortunate that some licenses couldn’t be given to tribes, as the idea of having an equal number of licenses for both groups was flawed from the start.
Representatives from Fanatics Betting and Gaming did not respond immediately to the news that was reported on Friday.
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Author
Peterson Christopher, with over seven years of experience covering sports and sports betting in Arizona, now heads the writing team at yengols.com. He has previously worked at ArizonaSports.com, the Tucson Weekly, and the Green Valley News.
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