Flutter Entertainment decides to stick inside the family as it appoints Amy Howe as the new CEO of FanDuel. The London-listed company has announced Howe’s appointment as permanent CEO of FanDuel in the early hours of Monday in the UK. After the news of the Howe’s climb up the ladder broke out, the stocks of Flutter climber 2% as of the local afternoon hours.
Howe Joined FanDuel Less than 2 Years Ago
One would say that Howe’s climb is pretty fast-paced, which speaks highly of her competence. She joined FanDuel less than two years ago as president. Before joining FanDuel, Howe was the global COO for Ticketmaster.
Howe replaces Matt King, who announced his plans to leave FanDuel after serving four years as the company’s CEO. King was among the driving factors in FanDuel’s transition from daily sports fantasy to becoming a market leader in the US when it comes to sports betting.
While working as president, Howe was in charge of overseeing the company’s sportsbook, DFS, horse racing, and casino. She proved to be a valuable asset as FanDuel remained its top spot in US market share, which fluctuated between 40% and 50%, as new states started legalizing online sports betting.
The CEO of Flutter, Peter Jackson, commented on the new appointment and stated that he is delighted to welcome Howe as the new US CEO of FanDuel. He added that since joining the company, Howe has been a fantastic asset, as she’s done a great job of leading the commercial functions, but also made sure that the company is on a good path while being at the current critical phase of the company’s growth. Flutter’s most exciting opportunity at the moment is the US market expansion and Jackson concluded by saying that Howe’s incredible track of experience and leadership in scaling a global business will play a vital part in the process of expansion.
King’s Departure Had Some Negative Effects
Flutter’s plans to offer a portion of its holding via an IPO from FanDuel went to dust with King’s departure earlier this summer, which was confirmed by a company statement. That statement read that the Board of Flutter has been discussing the potential merits that would come by listing a small FanDuel stake in the US. King’s departure delayed the timing of the listing, but the company will keep this option.
Since Howe is now in charge of the fast-growing market in the US and previous valuations concluded that FanDuel was worth around $35 billion this year, those discussions might be brought to the Board’s attention once more.
In a release, Howe stated that she was impressed by the quality of the team since joining, as well as the advantages that the company boasts, with product quality, board expertise and brand reach being some of them. She added that the Flutter Group must stay focused on executing its strategy for long-term success and thus, add value to the business.
Howe’s focus areas are organizational transformation, growth strategy, turnarounds and restructuring, as well as operational and commercial expertise. After all, she spent 15 years as a partner at McKinsey, a well-established consulting company.
As for King, he went back to the US sports betting market after he resurfaced at Fanatics, an apparel company. He intends to lead the company to new heights connected to trading cards and sports betting. This summer, Fanatics joined the six bids for the process of operating sports betting in New York by partnering with Barstool Sportsbook by Penn National Gaming as well as the platform provider Kambi. The interest in NY sports betting is massive and there are celebrities that want to invest in the market.
As for FanDuel, this company teamed up with Bally Bet, DraftKings and BetMGM for the NY bid. The winners will be announced by the New York State Gaming Commission at the end of 2021.