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FanDuel Sportsbook Soft Launches in New Jersey for Online Sports Betting
By Kyle Scott
Published:
FanDuel Sportsbook is now live. Sign up and get your first deposit matched up to $100. Or you can check out our FanDuel Sportsbook review.
Things are about to pick up this week for NJ online sports betting. Over the weekend, FanDuel Sportsbook soft-launched their sports betting app.
As was the case with DraftKings Sportsbook (read our full review), the New Jersey DGE mandates a five-day trial to make sure the platform is working as intended.
This brings the total number of New Jersey sports betting sites to five, with FanDuel joining DraftKings Sportsbook, PlayMGM, SugarHouse Sportsbook, and William Hill, which also launched its sports betting app this weekend but only on Android.
What is the soft launch period?
It’s a bit unclear what exactly is required, but sportsbooks have to demonstrate that their technology works at some scale and is mostly bug free.
They also have to close early (I believe at 12 a.m.), meaning that if you were to visit the site, say, now, you’d be greeted with this message:
We believe FanDuel also has to hold off on marketing their app, and their initial bonus – up to a $100 initial deposit match – is not remotely competitive with other sportsbooks.
FanDuel Sportbook launching in time for football
We’ve expected for a while now that FanDuel Sportsbook would be live in time for football season, with several sources indicating that they would be live in September.
FanDuel Sportsbook will be available through a web-based interface as well as on iOS and Android.
Actually now owned by European betting powerhouse BetFair, FanDuel will serve as the US brand given their recognition as a leader in daily fantasy, along with DraftKings. They opened one of the first casino-based sportsbooks in New Jersey at The Meadowlands, of course named FanDuel Sportsbook. And they will soon be live in West Virginia at the Greenbrier Resort. They are making a strong play to become the leader in legal US gambling.
Early feedback
Based on their web-based platform, FanDuel, in a very limited sample size, offers better odds than both DraftKings and SugarHouse, both of which are backed by betting powerhouse Kambi, who provide the lines and odds. FanDuel is backed by IGT, a leader in global gaming products. This delta in odds may just be a quirk of the initial launch, but it’s worth keeping an eye on, as critiques of both of those offerings (DraftKings and SugarHouse) were that some of their bets were more expensive than experienced bettors were used to.
The branding of the app matches the look and feel of the current FanDuel product, as was expected. While the data is backed by IGT, it’s clear that FanDuel and DraftKings both had deep involvement in the user interface of their respective offerings. While SugarHouse Sportsbook is a strong product on Day 1 and benefits by virtue of being a part of the company’s online casino app, it doesn’t have the same easy-to-use and familiar interface that the daily fantasy folks have. PlayMGM and William Hill, based on very early looks, appear to struggle in this same regard.
It will be interesting to see how the European mobile players are able to compete with the major US brands. From my view, they pose the most competition as they have deep experience offering mobile sports betting apps in the European market. Unlike casinos, where online gambling is a recent value-add, companies like BetStars, PointsBet (Australian) and 888 are mobile-first and have some level of experience here, even if they will be new to the US market.
Live betting
Out of the gate, FanDuel is addressing one of our gripes with DraftKings Sportsbook, which was the availability of live score information for in-play bets. FanDuel offers a clearly visible real-time scoreboard complete with data visualizations. While it’s not exactly cutting edge to offer live scores – any website can embed this information from a range of providers – FanDuel incorporates it to make decisions on live betting much easier. With DraftKings, we were annoyed to have to hop around to find live scores for a game we planned to bet on. Including the data right there on the bet screen just makes too much sense.
Sports offered
FanDuel will offer all of the expected options, but a notable exception is esports. Though legal in New Jersey, esports betting has an increased change of corruption since player compensation is so spread out, never mind that many fan, so far, are under 18, making them ineligible to bet by several years (!).
Drawbacks
One area where SugarHouse Sportsbook excels is in deposit options– credit card, PayPal and a slew of other online deposit methods are strengthened with in-person deposits at convenience stores. FanDuel, on the other hand, while it will merge wallets with its daily fantasy offering, won’t be able to take online deposits at its physical sportsbook at the Meadowlands. This is an area that it and DraftKings may struggle against established online casinos who already have working relationships with payment providers.
Still, FanDuel Sportsbook will undoubted be one of the more popular betting options in New Jersey and through the US. We’ll have a full review once it goes live, and we expect to be able to offer bonus and promo codes as well.
Full disclosure: We are an affiliate of legal New Jersey sports betting sites, so we may receive a commission if you use our links.
Bonus: First deposit matched up to $100
Minimum Deposit: $10
FanDuel Sportsbook
- Established brand
- Backed by Betfair
- Excellent interface
- Live betting view
Kyle Scott is the founder and editor of CrossingBroad.com. He has written for CBS Philly and Philly Voice, and been a panelist or contributor on NBC Sports Philly, FOX 29 and SNY TV, as well as a recurring guest on 97.5 The Fanatic, 94 WIP, 106.7 The Fan and other stations. He has more than 10 years experience running digital media properties and in online advertising and marketing.