Five years ago, American football barely cracked the top 10 betting interest at a popular sports betting operator in the U.K. and Ireland.
With the NFL’s games abroad now complete in 2024, Flutter Entertainment’s Paddy Power has produced numbers that show staggering growth in the region.
Active NFL bettors wagering on the London games increased 25% year-over-year while handle has risen 30%, according to data released by the parent company of U.S. sportsbook FanDuel.
American football has also become the third most-bet sport at Paddy Power, ranking only behind soccer and horse racing.
Wagering on the NFL has surpassed golf, boxing, darts, and rugby in a region where the pro football league has been expanding its branding for many years.
“The NFL has also successfully engaged a global audience by hosting international games in new locations,” Dominic Crosthwaite, Flutter's chief trading officer, said in a LinkedIn post.
“Its growing popularity in the U.K. presents an exciting opportunity for Flutter, playing to the strength of our global scale and shared innovations.”
NFL abroad
The NFL played three games in the U.K. this season as well as one in Germany and another in Brazil. The league’s international initiative is paying off for the gaming industry.
The most-bet league in the U.S. has been playing games in the U.K. since 2007 and is planning even more international contests next year.
NFL commissioner Roger Goodell said earlier this month that he wants eight games played outside of America in 2025. The league plans to add games in Spain, possibly Ireland, as well as continue playing in London, Brazil, Germany, and Mexico City.
Driving factors
Flutter commercial manager David Curran attributed four key areas for American football’s betting rise, “Organic growth in NFL interest, an enhanced product offering, the halo impact from growth in soccer activity, and our enhanced strategic focus on the NFL.”
The rise in interest is tied to the improved coverage of the NFL’s London games and the 2:30 p.m. kickoff, local time, according to Flutter.
“We’ve seen a real jump in NFL activity this season for various reasons,” Curran said.
The gaming company also said there’s a “notable crossover between the customers engaging with American football and its English-invented alternative.”
FanDuel’s role
Flutter has noticed an increase in promotional activity over the last few years.
FanDuel has played a big role in helping Paddy Power grow its U.K. and Irish customer base. The U.S. sportsbook owned a 41% market share in gross gaming revenue during the third quarter.
The NFL helped FanDuel produce $1.25 billion of Flutter’s $3.25 billion Q3 revenue.
Being able to use FanDuel’s risk-assessment strategies has also aided Flutter in maximizing NFL growth.
“From the outset, we wanted to ensure that we were maintaining the same service that was being given to customers from a risk and trading perspective, 24 hours of the day,” said Paddy Aherne, FanDuel’s head of trading.
“Even if it was early in the U.S., we wanted to be able to manage the full cycle of an NFL weekend schedule, allowing us to surface markets quicker and to leverage our pricing opinion more effectively.”
