It isn’t news anymore that DraftKings is the No.1 online gambling operator, not only in Pennsylvania, but the country, too. DraftKings’ acquisition of Golden Nugget in May 2022 just might have put it over the top.
Golden Nugget is a well-respected brand in both its retail and online business within the industry. The operator recently launched its Golden Nugget Casino Pennsylvania using DraftKings’ technology stack and produced impressive results. DraftKings is going to continue to lean on Golden Nugget for future success.
DraftKings Pennsylvania ascends after Golden Nugget acquisition
According to Chris Krafcik, Adam Kregcik and Brad Allen of Eilers & Krejcik Gaming and authors of The EKG Line, DraftKings sat in third in terms of gross gaming revenue (GGR) for online operators. DraftKings became one of the top PA online casinos after it acquired Golden Nugget in May 2022. It wasn’t too long after until it reached the top, according to this graph from The EKG Line:
Inflection point klaxon: Per my colleague @ckrafcik at @EilersKrejcik, $DKNG is the new GGR leader in the U.S. online betting (OSB + online casino) market, edging out FanDuel ($FLTR) after several years in second place. pic.twitter.com/mnK8KC16GJ
— Chris Grove (@OPReport) October 18, 2023
Just as DraftKings started to trend upward, FanDuel and BetMGM began a downward trajectory. That allowed DraftKings to become the No. 1 US online gambling operator, which it achieved in August 2023.
“It’s certainly been a contributor,” DraftKings CEO, Jason Robins, said of Golden Nugget on the company Q3 2023 call. “As I noted, we did gain share on the DraftKings brand, too. But when you combine the two brands, we’re almost a 30% share now in iGaming, which is, if you think about where we thought we could cap out a year or two ago, was lower than that.”
Golden Nugget launched in Pennsylvania using DraftKings’ technology stack, which has certainly helped the new operator.
Robins said of the Golden Nugget debut in the Keystone State:
“[Pennsylvania] was the first state that Golden Nugget was actually on the DraftKings platform. So, we’re very excited about that. We saw some really strong early results there and continue to feel really positive on the trajectory there.”
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How Golden Nugget PA benefits from DraftKings Casino
Utilizing DraftKings’ software comes with huge benefits for Golden Nugget. For starters, it boasts one of the largest PA slots libraries among online casinos in Pennsylvania. The new operator launched with nearly 600 slots, which is sixth among other PA platforms.
DraftKings Casino PA does not have a small library, either. It sits fourth among operators in offering 699 slots of the 8,000 available across the 20 different applications. DraftKings has its own branded slot games, too. For an operator such as DraftKings to have its own titles certainly helps in the revenue department.
The Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board (PGCB) breaks down revenue by license, and not by operator. However, the Hollywood Penn National license, which partners with DraftKings, BetMGM, Barstool, Hollywood and PointsBet, produced $632.4 million in YTD revenue through September. BetMGM Casino PA supplies the second-most slots with 867, and while it’s difficult to tell the exact amount each operator contributes, the common denominator is the more games an operator has, the more players are going to be active.
Golden Nugget had a strong September of its own. It recorded $6.4 million in monthly revenue, which finished in the top six among PA licenses.
DraftKings to apply Golden Nugget online casino PA approach to other states
Earnings for Golden Nugget are expected to increase in the near future. It helps that the platform is able to add some of the DraftKings-branded games onto its own site.
Robins plans on taking the Golden Nugget blueprint in Pennsylvania and utilizing it in other states where online casinos are legal. He said:
“We actually haven’t migrated in any other states yet. That’s all on the docket over the next couple of quarters. We’re going to migrate every state for Golden Nugget online gaming. So really, I think that’s something that also contributed to a little bit of the share increase, and hopefully, there’s some more juice in that as we migrate these other states and continue to optimize.”
