Paddy Power Betfair agree FanDuel deal to boost US business

Paddy Power Betfair have agreed a deal to combine their United States business with American fantasy sports company FanDuel as the race to cement a place in the US sports betting market continues.

FanDuel, which has its headquarters in New York, has more than a 40 per cent share of the $300million US daily fantasy sports market, with seven million registered customers across 40 states.

After contributing their assets in the US, plus $158m in cash, Paddy Power Betfair will own 61 per cent of the combined business, with existing FanDuel investors owning the remainder once the deal is completed, which is expected to happen in the third quarter of this year.

Chief executive Peter Jackson said: "We're excited to add FanDuel to the group's portfolio of leading sports brands. This combination creates the industry's largest online business in the US, with a large sports-focused customer base and an extensive nationwide footprint.

"The group has leading sports betting operating capabilities globally and strong operations on the ground in the US. Together with our substantial financial firepower, we believe we're now well placed to target the prospective US sports betting opportunity."

Ban lifted

Earlier this month the United States Supreme Court lifted the ban on sports betting when it found in favour of the state of New Jersey's challenge to the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act (Paspa).

Paddy Power Betfair have a long-established presence in the US having bought horseracing television and betting network TVG in 2009, before the addition of the Betfair online casino and betting exchange in New Jersey and also a smaller fantasy sports operation Draft, purchased for $48m last year.

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