FanDuel has added a few new faces to its legalization team that suggest the biggest online sports betting operator in the United States hopes to unlock new opportunities for itself in some of the biggest markets in the country.
The recent hires include a former legislative lawyer, regulator, and journalist who have experience in three key states: California, Florida, and Illinois.
Those markets are either off-limits to FanDuel’s online gambling businesses (California and Florida) or have recently become a lot less attractive because of a tax increase and a lack of legal iGaming there (Illinois).
This slide from FanDuel-parent Flutter's investor day suggests they are gonna keep pushing for sports betting (and perhaps iGaming) legalization in California and Texas, as well as trying to figure out a way to get into Florida, where Hard Rock Bet has a monopoly. pic.twitter.com/cQrcyBkBoW
— Geoff Zochodne (@GeoffZochodne) September 25, 2024
FanDuel’s new hires will likely aid in its legalization and lobbying campaigns as the operator looks to maintain and perhaps grow its lead over its rivals.
“As we continue to evolve our government relations team, we are excited to bring in two experienced professionals who understand our business, are deeply respected by legislators and can help us continue to show the positive impact legal and regulated gaming can have for states,” said Cesar Fernandez, head of state government relations at FanDuel, in a December press release.
The two professionals of which Fernandez spoke were James Hartmann and Louis Trombetta, who joined FanDuel as directors of government relations.
Hartmann is a former prosecutor who served as chief counsel to the speaker of the Illinois House of Representatives.
“Throughout his time in the Illinois House, he was involved in all aspects of the legislative process and played a crucial role in some of the most consequential legislation in state history,” FanDuel said in its press release. “Hartmann was also the lead gaming attorney for the House, where he negotiated and drafted legislation that legalized sports betting in Illinois and legislation that authorized a long-awaited casino in Chicago.”
Trombetta, meanwhile, was the first executive director of the Florida Gaming Control Commission.
“His strategic leadership and deep understanding of regulatory frameworks will be invaluable as FanDuel continues to seek to expand its operations,” the New York-based company noted.
From newsman to newsmaker
Those hirings were followed by the announcement last week by longtime online gambling journalist Matthew Kredell that he had started at FanDuel as a senior manager of legislative affairs. Kredell’s reporting included plenty of coverage on the legalization efforts for sports betting in California, as well as for iCasino across the U.S.
“After 17 years of covering online casino gaming and sports betting legislation as a journalist, I’m joining the efforts to get legislation passed,” Kredell wrote on X, the former Twitter.
The additions come as U.S. lawmakers are preparing to sit down in state capitols across the country for the new legislative season.
Countless bills will be proposed and debated over the coming weeks and months, and some of that legislation will have to do with gambling. Case in point: in Illinois, Gov. J.B. Pritzker and others are already reportedly set to ponder iGaming legalization as a way of shoring up the state’s finances.
FanDuel’s parent company, Dublin-based Flutter Entertainment, also made it clear during an investor day last year that it plans to push for legalization or expansion in California, Florida, and Texas, the three most populous states in the U.S.
However, there are obstacles in all three states that gaming industry lobbyists will have to overcome.
In California, for example, any path to legal sports betting will run through its Native American gaming tribes. FanDuel has taken an apologetic approach in the Golden State after the costly and failed effort by it and others to push an online sports betting ballot measure in 2022.
Moreover, in addition to Hartmann, Trombetta, and Kredell, the company has recently hired executives with experience dealing with the tribes.
My base case is this: nothing
Meanwhile, in Florida, the state’s Seminole Tribe has a legal monopoly over sports betting and the inside track for any iGaming products.
DraftKings and FanDuel also tried and failed to get an online sports wagering question on the ballot in Florida in 2022. Then, in the fall, the chief executive of Seminole Gaming suggested a “strategic relationship” with DraftKings, FanDuel, and others could have value.
While the added manpower could help FanDuel with its lobbying efforts, there is no guarantee of success in state legislatures or otherwise. Legalized sports betting is facing plenty of pushback at the moment, and iGaming legalization faces opposition from brick-and-mortar operators and labor unions.
Citizens JMP Securities analyst Jordan Bender wrote in a note to clients last week that “our base case for legalization is nothing.”
“The efforts to legalize real money gaming in the remaining U.S. states appear to be taking time with legislators, albeit moving in the right direction, but we have taken a bearish view as we model no new states launching until 2027 (excluding Missouri),” Bender wrote. “The learnings from the last two years highlight to us that guessing legislative changes is near impossible, as North Carolina legalized sports betting at the last moment, the Illinois tax rate changed structure in the final hours, and Missouri, a state expected to pass sports betting, barely garnering enough votes.”
