Four years after becoming the first major media company to launch its own branded betting offering, Fox Corp. is pulling back in the space.
Fox and its partner, FanDuel owner Flutter Entertainment, said that they will shut down the Fox Bet service four years after launching it.
Fox entered the betting space in 2019, a year after the U.S. Supreme Court opened the door to legalized sports betting in Murphy vs. NCAA. Fox Bet offered both free games (called Fox Bet Super 6), which it offered nationwide, and sought gambling licenses, which it received in Colorado, New Jersey, Michigan, and Pennsylvania.
Fox initially partnered with The Stars Group to launch the service, though when The Stars Group was acquired by FanDuel owner Flutter (helped in part by Fox), it sparked a lengthy arbitration between Flutter and Fox over the media company’s option to acquire a larger stake in the betting company. The arbitration was completed last year, with Fox given a 10-year option to acquire 18.6 percent of FanDuel for $3.7 billion.
Flutter will keep Fox Bet’s customer database and its licenses, while Fox will retain the Fox Bet brands, including the Fox Bet Super 6 brand name.
Fox will “launch an all new Fox Super 6 game later this summer,” per the companies. It is unclear what the new game will be, given the split from the online betting business.
Executives at the company, including CEO Lachlan Murdoch, had long touted the potential for sports betting to its business lines, in particular the obvious connection to its Fox Sports division. However, the option to acquire the stake in FanDuel gives the company economic exposure to one of the biggest players in the space, even if it means that it will no longer offer its own branded option.
