Sports betting industry spending on U.S. midterm elections surpasses $72 million
DraftKings, FanDuel and other online sports betting companies have ramped up election spending on the U.S. midterms to at least $72 million so far, the latest campaign election data shows, as prediction markets like Kalshi and Polymarket bring fresh scrutiny — and competition — to online betting.
DraftKings, FanDuel and other online sports betting companies have ramped up election spending on the U.S. midterms to at least $72 million so far, the latest campaign election data shows, as prediction markets like Kalshi and Polymarket bring fresh scrutiny — and competition — to online betting.
The lucrative U.S. online sports gambling industry is confronting competition from what some see as a direct threat from a new breed of gambling across prediction markets, which the administration of President Donald Trump has embraced.
The industry has become the third-largest corporate donor in the U.S. midterms behind crypto and technology, corporate watchdog Public Citizen estimates, pushing to get candidates elected to office who it hopes will be sympathetic to its issues.
Online sports betting books DraftKings, FanDuel, Fanatics and U.K.-based bet365 have poured their money into Win for America, a so-called super political action committee that has directed its funds into two affiliate PACs targeting Democratic and Republican state races: American Future and the American Conservative Fund, respectively.
A commercial for Draft Kings during the Super Bowl broadcast on television screens at a bar in Los Angeles on Feb. 8.Jill Connelly / Bloomberg via Getty ImagesSuper PACs are U.S. political committees that can accept unlimited donations from corporations and individuals and spend unlimited sums supporting specific candidates, but they cannot coordinate directly with campaigns or donate directly to them.
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