Kay Adams prepares to roll the dice on a new opportunity.
The former NFL Network host is launching a new morning show that will rely heavily on betting chatter, all on a cable network operated by one of the biggest betting facilitators in the business: FanDuel. She could talk upside and down about her speeding in Los Angeles or the types of things that could appear in HBO’s new “House of Dragons” series. But she’s also ready to mingle with knowledgeable guests and experts in creating odds and betting on upcoming sports games.
Betting on sports “is part of our game. It’s the future of the industry,” says Adams. “I want to be on the safe side of this.”
His new show will be one of the flagship offerings of FanDuel TV, the launch of which represents the first foray of one of the industry’s leading legalized sports betting operators into the media sector. To be sure, ESPN2 has a regular betting show, “The Daily Wager”. DraftKings, one of FanDuel’s biggest rivals, produces a series of podcasts. And Caesars Entertainment struck a deal in June with Peyton Manning’s Omaha Productions to produce podcasts and digital series.
But none of them operate a 24-hour television program. FanDuel is betting on the power of linear television (with broadband accompaniment) at a time when this business has more skeptics than in the past. General entertainment and sports outlets that rely on cable for distribution have seen their subscribers plummet and viewership decline, and more consumers are turning to streaming sites to watch their favorite programming.
FanDuel is launching its network as part of a campaign to legalize certain types of gambling across the country. The legal sports betting market is expected to grow from $4.3 billion in 2021 to $19.7 billion in 2026, according to Ellers & Krejcik, a market research company. Already, 36 states allow legal betting, with 58% of the adult US population residing in one of these states. Advertisers who want to attract players can use national media that caters to them.
As digital companies get sports rights, they make games more interactive. Amazon’s Prime Video, for example, will surround its “Thursday Night Football” streams with alternative fees and the ability to explore stats and highlights, all at the click of a button.
FanDuel does not start from scratch. It owned cable network TVG — largely focused on horse racing and formerly part of TV Guide Inc. — for years, as part of an acquisition by a predecessor company. But his efforts may well create, if not the next ESPN or Fox Sports, then certainly the next ESPN or Fox Sports of sports betting.
“I’m rebuilding TVG as FanDuel TV to be the first network built from the ground up that’s designed to be watched with a phone in hand,” FanDuel Chief Commercial Officer Mike Raffensperger said in an interview. “Every image on the screen will have something you can interact with.”
FanDuel and its broadband counterpart FanDuel+ will go live in September. Adams’ new weekday 11 a.m. schedule isn’t the only offering. Pat McAfee’s PMI Network will produce content for use in FanDuel TV’s weekly programming block. The Ringer, the sports and cultural center supported by Bill Simmons, will provide material from its podcasts and digital networks. “More Ways to Win,” hosted by former ESPN anchor Lisa Kerney, will continue to run on the network. FanDuel TV will also showcase international basketball through a new licensing deal with Sportradrar that will give it over 3,000 hours of live international sports to broadcast. And FanDuel TV will continue to highlight the horse racing coverage that has long been available on TVG.
FanDuel hopes to break the mould, says Raffensperger. “The world doesn’t need more highly analytical, X- and O-based touts from the game. There’s a lot of them out there, and frankly, I don’t think it can always be this interesting.” he says. “I’m interested in creating something that features voices like Kay’s that are unique, authentic, and have real engagement with their audience, and that can embed the game into larger editorial narratives in sport and culture. “
Adams, the sportscaster, expects to speak to a new kind of sports audience, one that expects to interact with the games they see rather than passively integrating them. the future of what sports content looks like,” she adds.
VIP+ Analysis: The Rapid Growth of Legalized U.S. Sports Betting
