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The FanDuel Sportsbook is now live in New Jersey.
New documents obtained by PlayUSA via a freedom of information request show exactly how and why FanDuel has reentered Texas for daily fantasy sports, against the recommendation of the state’s attorney general office.
One of the documents, a letter from one of the state’s assistant attorney generals, stated that “the State does not agree that you may engage in fantasy sports gambling.”
“We look forward to either the courts or the Texas Legislature conclusively deciding the legality of paid daily fantasy sports,” Marc Rylander, director of communications for the AG’s office, told PlayUSA in a statement.
Also revealed in the documents is the fact that FanDuel has joined litigation alongside DraftKings in trying to determine the status of daily fantasy sports in Texas.
The backstory on FanDuel and Texas
Two years after closing up shop in one of the key daily fantasy sports markets, FanDuel is back in business in Texas.
The company resumed paid-entry contests came from Deputy First Assistant Attorney General Brantley Starr, and it did not mince words.
Here it is in full:
We received your letter dated August 16, 2018. The State does not agree that you may engage in fantasy sports gambling. The legality of that matter is at issue with another party in a lawsuit pending in Travis County [citation]. We would not object to you joining that lawsuit. Otherwise, the State may pursue appropriate legal actions against you.
“Another party” is DraftKings, and FanDuel immediately heeded Starr’s advice. Although it agreed not to take the state to court, the company formally intervened in DraftKings’ case. Both companies are now listed as plaintiffs in the civil suit.
You can see that filing here:
[pdf-embedder url=”https://www.playusa.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/FanDuel-Intervention-Final.pdf” title=”FanDuel Intervention – Final”]
Prior to filing, FanDuel reopened its platform to customers in Texas. It has not promoted the re-entry under its self-imposed silence, but it did offer a brief statement to PlayUSA:
Considering a variety of factors related to the operation of daily fantasy sports in Texas, we have re-entered the market while the issue is being resolved by the state.
With operators and state officials locked in a stalemate, it looks like the courts may ultimately decide the fate of Texas DFS.
