Apple has recently launched a sports app that brings real-time odds provided by DraftKings while also furnishing its customers who download the free application with game statistics and up-to-the-minute scores.
Apple Partners With DraftKings
The sports app that Apple launched exclusively for iPhones will have its betting odds powered by Boston-based mobile sportsbook, DraftKings. Currently, Apple Sports will have plenty of information for the NBA, NHL, and MLS, and will be in full swing when March Madness arrives. Users will also be able to find the latest breaking odds and information for MLB and the NFL when those sports are back in season.
“We created Apple Sports to give sports fans what they want — an app that delivers incredibly fast access to scores and stats. Apple Sports is available for free in the App Store, and makes it easy for users to stay up to date with their favorite teams and leagues,” said Eddy Cue, Apple’s senior vice president of Services and a member of the team that designed the app.
Jordan Bender, an analyst at Citizens JMP, stated, “The entrance of Apple into the sports betting conversation is just another example of the acceptance among companies outside the space and the general public. The DraftKings integration is just another way for the company to gain brand recognition on a large scale, similar to the recent BetMGM integration with X several weeks ago. The odds integrations have been around since the formation of the sector, yet DraftKings inking a deal with Apple highlights the effectiveness behind this type of marketing spend, and we believe it comes at a more economical rate compared to past years.”
The Long Game
Right now, DraftKings is merely providing odds, prices, and lines on the leagues and games that are shown on Apple’s new sports app. It’s never a bad thing to be associated with, even in a small way, with a technology leader like Apple. However, this partnership could become highly lucrative for DraftKings if users are allowed to touch the odds and surf directly to the DraftKings sportsbook, something that currently cannot be done.
Apple’s Eddy Cue left the door ajar for that possibility when he remarked, “Whether we let you tap on it to go to DraftKings or not … we’ll decide that later, we just decided right now we just want to show the odds, and see,” Cue said. “We’re not against [betting].”
Strong Alliance
If that possibility does indeed exist, as Cue says it does, then DraftKings could be laying low, biding its time, and playing the long game. It would be a coup of epic proportions if DraftKings had access to Apple’s legion of subscribers. Apple News boasts over 100 million active subscribers and should Apple Sports approach those numbers it would be a boon to both Apple and DraftKings especially if the two titans of their respective industries reach an agreement on linking the sportsbook as opposed to simply having DK provide odds without that capability.
“You have the cult following of Apple where it leads to its users staying within the ecosystem for everything,” said Brendan Bussmann, the managing partner of B Global Advisors. “As the app expands to more leagues and teams, the opportunity continues to grow within that ecosystem, create the synergies with TV, and then transition those users that desire to wager the ability to do so. If you can create a complete experience that then transfers over to DraftKings, it could be a big opportunity for both entities.”
