DraftKings edged out FanDuel for the first time as the market-share leader in US online gambling, a new report shows

• DraftKings has taken the top spot in the US online gambling market, a new report shows.
• FanDuel has long held the lead.
• DraftKings’ recent acquisition of Golden Nugget Online Gaming helped push the company to the front.

There’s a new top dog in online gambling in the United States.

According to a Wednesday report from market research firm Eilers & Krejcik Gaming, DraftKings has surpassed rival FanDuel for the largest share of the US online gambling market.

In the third quarter ended August 23, DraftKings had approximately 31% of online gambling gross gaming revenue, while FanDuel’s market-share lead had shrunk to 30%. This applies to both online sports betting and casino gaming.

GGR, or gross gaming revenue, is an important industry metric that shows the amount wagered less the amount paid out to winners.

DraftKings’ rise comes after the company completed its acquisition of Golden Nugget Online Gaming in May 2022, which fueled its recent growth spurt.

Prior to the Golden Nugget acquisition, DraftKings briefly trailed BetMGM in the race for market share, with roughly 20%, according to Eilers & Krejcik Gaming. However, DraftKings’ share has steadily increased since then, according to the report.

The firm stated in a newsletter on Thursday that the trend is “seemingly continuing into September from states that have reported data so far.”

Meanwhile, FanDuel has declined from a peak of 37% online gambling share in Q1 2023. The Flutter-owned company remains the market leader in US online sports betting.

The battle for market share among sportsbooks has recently become a hot topic in the industry, owing to Penn Entertainment’s ambitious goal of capturing double-digit market share with the entry of ESPN Bet and Fanatics.

DraftKings and FanDuel have long dominated the industry, despite competition from BetMGM, Caesars Entertainment, and others — and their lead has only grown in the last year.

This could change as new competition arrives this fall, as well as “the sleeping giant” Bet365 continues its US expansion.

Other factors, such as marketing pullbacks from No. 3 and No. 4 market-share leaders BetMGM and Caesars Entertainment, may have helped DraftKings overtake FanDuel, according to the report.

Eilers & Krejcik Gaming, which conducts consumer research on gambling apps, discovered that DraftKings had improved its product and online sports betting hold, as well as its operational execution, “allowing it to capture more value on a per-customer basis,” according to the report.

Due to Wall Street pressure, DraftKings’ stock is up 116% year over year after largely managing to rein in customer acquisition spending and prioritize earnings targets.