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Read Full BioUnderdog announced it will partner with the Kansas City Royals to offer sports betting in Missouri when the state launches the market later this year.
Missouri would become the second state for Underdog to obtain a sports betting license if approved by the Missouri Gaming Commission (MGC). The company already has a license in North Carolina, while it operates DFS in a range of other states.
Under the terms of legalizing sports betting in Missouri, companies had to either apply for two untethered licenses, partner with the state’s sports teams, or team up with licensed casinos.
After the MGC granted Circa Sports and DraftKings the untethered licenses, sportsbooks have been entering agreements with several sports teams. Nine companies have confirmed licenses, including bet365, BetMGM, Caesars, ESPN Bet, Fanatics, and FanDuel.
The latter was forced to partner up with MLS side St. Louis City after the MGC opted not to grant it an untethered license. Underdog had previously confirmed its intention to enter the market, but had not yet revealed its partner.
Fans Can Enjoy More Barks at the Park
In a statement announcing the partnership, Brooks Sherman, President of Business Operations for the Royals, celebrated the continuation of the collaboration with Underdog. Sherman stated, “The Royals look forward to continuing and enhancing our partnership with Underdog, which is our longest-standing relationship in sports gaming.”
“We’ve partnered with them on some of our most engaging fan programs, like Bark at the Park and the Underdog Hot Dog Derby, and we look forward to working with Underdog to provide Royals fans throughout Missouri the opportunity to have even more fun while watching sports.”
Stacie Stern, Senior Vice President of Government Affairs and Partnerships at Underdog, added, “We’ve built our products with the same approach – real, organic connection with sports fans to get to one goal: make sports more fun.
“We are going to work with the Royals to bring the best sports betting experience possible to fans in Missouri, while we continue to drive innovation in sports gaming and expand our product offerings in new states.”
Underdog Expands Amid Regulatory Scrutiny
Additionally, Underdog has recently partnered with Crypto.com to expand into prediction markets. The collaboration allows users to combine trades on Crypto.com’s moneylines with DFS props in 16 states, including many that do not allow sports betting.
The partnership has not launched in Missouri, and other states with legal sports betting have warned operators about collaborating with prediction market platforms.
No state has yet come out against the Underdog and Crypto.com collaboration, but with markets available in Texas and California, it could face future legal challenges.
As a primarily DFS operator, Underdog has already faced challenges in offering its products nationwide. It obtained a DFS license in New York, only to be forced out of the state and made to pay a $18.5 million penalty.
New York’s gambling regulator accused the company of violating the terms of its license and offering markets that amounted to sports betting. It has since relaunched in the state with a limited version of its Pick’em product.
In California, the platform also begrudgingly withdrew its against-the-house Pick’em game after Attorney General Rob Bonta declared DFS illegal gambling.
In addition to expanding the options for players in various states, Underdog also announced a partnership with Sportradar last week. As part of the deal, Underdog will utilize Sportradar’s AI tools to monitor players for potential gambling problems.
