Research Firm Praise Fanatics Sports Betting App's Launch Performance
The launch of Fanatics' new mobile sports betting app has had a promising start in terms of downloads during the first week of the 2023 NFL season. Fanatics, in partnership with PointsBet, introduced their sportsbook app in Maryland, Massachusetts, Ohio, and Tennessee last month. In late August, they expanded to seven additional states — Colorado, Iowa, Kansas, Maryland, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Virginia, and West Virginia — as part of their announced acquisition of PointsBet US. The app's early performance looks promising.
A study by research firm Eilers & Krejcik Gaming (EKG) found that in the first week of the NFL season, the Fanatics-PointsBet duo took a remarkable 14% share of downloads from a group of top U.S. OSB (only online sportsbooks) brands. Of that 14%, 9% belonged to the Fanatics Sportsbook app, and 5% was attributed to PointsBet: A Fanatics Experience, which is branding used in some states where the PointsBet US acquisition is pending regulatory approval.
In the past, PointsBet (OTC: PBTHF) decided to sell off its US operations due to continuous financial losses and underperformance in terms of market share. Whether Fanatics can overcome this issue is still uncertain, but they've made a strong initial impression in terms of getting sports bettors to consider the sportsbook. The study showed that in week one, PointsBet: A Fanatics Experience accounted for 5% of downloads for sportsbook apps, a significant improvement from the dismal 1% share the brand had the previous year.
The only other sportsbooks experiencing an increase in downloads during the first week of NFL action were FanDuel and Bet365, but their growth was relatively small in EKG's view.
Fanatics may have had some help in capturing downloads due to their creative marketing strategies. "Both Fanatics and PointsBet offered merchandise-focused promotions that seem to have resonated with U.S. OSB players," EKG mentioned. For instance, on PointsBet, new users receive a free jersey if they bet $50 or more.
However, having downloads doesn't necessarily mean that people will spend money on the app. "What percentage of Fanatics downloads came from non-live OSB states? And are the Fanatics/PointsBet products good enough to keep acquired OSB players around after they receive their promo merchandise?" EKG posed as a conclusion, as the second week of the NFL season kicked off.
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