Betting giant DraftKings has agreed to a partnership deal with the Drone Racing League. The new deal makes DraftKings the first bookmaker to offer drone racing markets to bettors. With this new development, players will now be able to bet both in race-live and pre-race bets.
While DraftKings currently operates in 43 states, only players residing in West Virginia, New Hampshire, Colorado, New Jersey, and Tennessee will be able to legally access these markets. As per reports, regulatory approval is currently pending in several other states.
For many players, this is a perfect opportunity to explore a new market that appears to be quite promising. After the sudden outbreak of COVID-19, DraftKings and many other sportsbooks were forced to either shut down or turn to non-conventional sports as many leagues were suspended. Apart from featuring drone racing markets, DraftKings will also have exclusive marketing rights around brand integrations and sports betting. In addition, both organizations will host and co-produce pre-flight shows which will include analysis and breakdowns by betting experts and experienced drone pilots.
According to DraftKings CBO, Ezra Kucharz, Drone Racing League is fast scaling their business and DraftKings is more than excited to be flying along with the league. On January 9, the first-ever drone racing event that people could bet on took place at the DRL Allianz World Championship finals.
The Drone Racing League
The Drone Racing League mainly features experienced drone pilots who race with customized high-speed drones through complex courses. By matching digital experience with reality, the Drone Racing League has been able to deliver immersive content, visually stimulating races, and innovative drone technology.
While it was established back in 2015, the Drone Racing League has developed a cult following, with a bigger percentage of the demographic consisting of people aged 18-37 years. All drones used in DRL are developed by the organization, and each race features identical models capable of attaining top speeds of 90 miles per hour.
Even though each of these UAVs are custom built by the league, they are quite expensive with each drone costing no less than $2,000.
DraftKings Revenue Expected to Grow by 45 Percent in 2021
During the 2020 season, DraftKings Fantasy decided to introduce drone racing to consumers through a free to play pool. The culmination of this decision was an upsurge in the number of participants by more than 30 percent during the first week. Currently, there are more than 200,000 entries.
Being a leader in Esports and motorsports betting, DraftKings believes that DRL is going to bring in a new audience and help the company to scale to new heights. According to consumer research, drone racing fans are 3 times more likely to place wagers in comparison to fans who support major league sports. This is one of the main reasons why DraftKings decided to introduce drone racing betting markets.
In 2020, DraftKings registered an increase in its annual revenue with the company expecting to bring in up to $750 million in returns. Apart from the impressive returns, DraftKings also saw an 11 percent increase in its stock value in 2020.