State by state, governors and attorneys general are shutting down or significantly impeding daily fantasy sports sites like FanDuel and Draft Kings. Just last month, Texas AG Ken Paxton issued an opinion that daily fantasy sports constituted illegal gambling under state law, and California’s legislature advanced a bill out of committee that would impose strict new regulations on the entire industry. Coupled with New York’s ongoing battle to curtail the growing popularity of DFS sites, that leaves three of the largest markets off limits to the billion-dollar industry.
So it’s really no surprise that on Friday, Boston-based Draft Kings announced via press release that it is expanding into the U.K., where sports betting operates under far more relaxed rules than in the U.S. In addition to reaching NFL fans living abroad, the site also announced new partnerships with Arsenal, Liverpool, and Watford, three marquee franchises in the English Premier League.