Two of the biggest names in US sports betting have partnered with the same media company.
Turner Sports, the owner of Bleacher Report, has inked partnerships with both FanDuel and DraftKings.
The Turner portfolio includes NBA Digital, Bleacher Report, ELEAGUE, NCAA March Madness, NBA on TNT, NCAA Digital and MLB on TBS and
What the deals include
The two sports betting giants will essentially split the Turner Sports portfolio between them. FanDuel will secure the rights to Turner’s NBA properties while DraftKings will get everything else.
Both deals will run multiple years, however, Turner Sports did not disclose the financial terms of either deal.
Both deals will see DraftKings and FanDuel odds, sports betting and fantasy sports content integrated across Turner’s digital and television properties. This will also include a presence on the Bleacher Report app.
Mike Raffensperger, chief marketing officer for FanDuel Group, said: “Turner Sports is a leader in the media industry and, together, we’re bringing viewership to the next level by offering exclusive sports betting content that’s directly integrated into their NBA programming.”
Will Funk, Executive Vice President, Sports Partnerships and Branded Content, Turner Sports, said: “NBA fans across TNT and Bleacher Report are responding well to sports betting content. We’ve already seen this with the TV and digital elements we’ve designed with FanDuel this past season and are excited to expand our partnership.
“Our collective goal is to grow NBA audience via engaging FanDuel interactive gaming experiences integrated across Turner Sports’ platforms.”
On the DraftKings deal, Funk said: “While this emerging industry continues to evolve, sports betting helps to drive engagement, increased time spent viewing and audience scale.
This alliance enhances Turner Sports’ content with betting information that our hyper-engaged, highly interactive viewers demand, while driving customer engagement and acquisition for DraftKings.
DraftKings chief business officer Ezra Kucharz added: “Regulated betting is quickly becoming a fixture of modern sports entertainment, and this collaboration with Turner Sports further scales the reach of our products and content to engage fans.”
Another media company deal
Turner Sports’ deals with DraftKings and FanDuel mark the latest deals between a sportsbook operator and a media company.
In September, ESPN entered deals with Caesars Entertainment and DraftKings to integrate odds from William Hill and daily fantasy sports information from DraftKings. This came after the Australian sportsbook operator, PointsBet, agreed on a deal to become the official sports betting partner of NBC Sports.
At the time of writing, Yahoo and BetMGM, the product of the joint venture between GVC Holdings and MGM Resorts International, are engaged in a partnership. CBS Sports and William Hill are also working together, as are ESPN and Caesars Entertainment.
Penn National Gaming is also working with Barstool Sports to capitalize on the evolving US sports betting space.
