Rapper Jay-Z Teams Up With Fanatics For NY Sports Betting Bid

Jay-Z and Fanatics (a sports clothing company) have come together to apply for a mobile sports betting license in New York.
The sportsbook would be called Fanatics Sportsbook and would use Kambi as their software provider.
The New York Gaming Commission (NYGC) has received six bids for mobile sportsbook licenses of which there are two and an announcement will be made in December for who the two will be.

NEW YORK – He’s got 99 problems but a bid ain’t one as rapper Jay-Z has entered into a partnership with Fanatics, a sports clothing company to get into the mobile sports betting industry of New York. Having an Empire State of mind for business, Jay-Z has become one of the bidders seeking to become a licensed mobile sportsbook in New York.

Regulated sports betting has surged as a market nationwide with profits going beyond anything that could have ever been expected. Especially in New Jersey, the neighbor of New York, which has just posted the tenth highest monthly handle in a row for the country as a whole. But a lot of their business comes from New Yorkers, as all they have to do is cross the bridge into the state to access mobile platforms not available to them in their state.

Mobile Sports Betting In New York

New York sports betting finally decided to add mobile sportsbooks to their very limited market which consisted of retail-based venues upstate earlier this year. However, the legislation that was passed to add a mobile market will have only two available licenses which will go to the highest and most qualified bidders, and Jay-Z along with Fanatics have thrown their hat into the ring.

Shawn Carter (Jay-Z’s real name) has his name on the application for what would be known as Fanatics Sportsbook. He would be the vice-chairman of the company. Kambi will serve as the software used for the application. New York’s two licensed operators would be able to open up two platforms apiece for a total of four state-affiliated mobile sportsbooks.

Per the New York Gaming Commission (NYGC), BetMGM, Caesars Sportsbook, DraftKings, Fanatics, FanDuel, and WynnBET have all put in their bids for the two available licenses. FanDuel is rumored to have put in a high enough bid to be able to receive one of the licenses. Final decisions and an announcement of who will be the mobile sports betting platforms for New York will occur in December.

Will Fanatics Get A Sportsbook In New York?

Jay-Z is a billionaire and has invested $325 million into this latest venture with Fanatics through his company Roc Nation. On its own, Fanatics was already worth $18 billion. A sportsbook endeavor like this in a state like New York that is filled with sports fans, teams, and bettors, would only grow the value of the company to become that much larger.

“Fanatics Sportsbook will use one of the largest sports fan databases in North America and proven sports betting platform and player account management technology to operate sports wagering in New York,” the company wrote in its application.

New York asked for a $25 million application fee upfront and a 50% tax rate on all handle collected by their mobile sportsbooks. This part of the industry is expected to be live by the Super Bowl in 2022.

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Christina Monroe

Christina has been writing for as long as she can remember and does dedicated research on the newly regulated sports betting market. She comes from a family of sports lovers that engage in friendly bets from time to time. During the winter months, you can find Christina baking cookies and beating the entire staff at Mario Kart…the N64 version of course.