Fanatics to unveil online betting in 24 states

Dec. 3 (UPI) — Sports and gaming company Fanatics announced it is launching its own gaming prediction platform in 24 U.S. states.

On Wednesday, the sports merchandiser revealed Fanatics will launch its new platform in 24 states, including Texas, California, Washington and Florida. It will permit users to trade in areas of sports, finance and culture.

“For years, Fanatics has given fans new ways to enhance their fandom through team merchandise, collectibles, tickets, gaming, events and more,” according to Fanatics Betting and Gaming CEO Matt King.

It will launch in segments over the next week, according to Fanatics company officials.

The first part will be released Wednesday in collaboration with Crypto.com.

“Now, with Fanatics Markets, we’re giving fans a safe, and intuitive way to engage with the moments that move sports and culture and to pick a side and profit along the way if their prediction is correct,” King said in a statement.

Crypto.com officials called it the “first fan-led prediction market at the intersection of sports, finance, and culture” in a social media post.

Fantastics initial launch will include 10 states to bet on other contracts, such as politics and economics. It said next year the company will shift into crypto, stocks, tech, music and other gaming.

Early next year, Fanatics will expand into contracts for crypto, stocks, tech, music and more, it said.

On Wednesday, Fanatics created gaming launches in Alaska, Delaware, Hawaii, Idaho, Maine, New Hampshire, North Dakota, Rhode Island, South Dakota and Utah.

On Thursday, it opens in Alabama, Minnesota, Mississippi, Nebraska, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Carolina and Wisconsin. On Friday, in California, Florida, Georgia, Texas and Washington.

Last month, Fanatics CEO Michael Rubin told CNBC it would enter the market.

Fanatics acquired the U.S. assets of Australia’s PointsBet in a 2023 deal for $150 million.

In July, Fanatics Markets took over commodity broker Paragon Global Markets, LLC.

“This is really the top of the first inning on a market that’s going to grow exponentially over the next five to 10 years, so we’re not worried about being a couple months behind” competitors, King told CNBC Wednesday.

Fanatics in recent years ended a merger deal in 2021 with baseball card producer Topps, and in 2021 secured a multi-year merchandise and memorabilia deal with Los Angeles Angeles star Shohei Ohtani.

It now rivals other predictive platforms such as Kalshi, DraftKings, Polymarket and Flutter-owned FanDuel that’ve exploded in recent years in legal online betting.

A report in February highlighted how millions of Americans have sought help for gambling addiction in the wake of a 2018 U.S. Supreme Court ruling permitting states to legalize sports betting.