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FanDuel beat an Aug. 24 deadline set by three members of Congress, responding Aug. 14 to concerns about its VIP program and responsible-gambling practices. But the company’s five-page letter addressed only three of eight questions lawmakers had posed.
Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., and Reps. Paul Tonko, D-N.Y., and Valerie Foushee, D-N.C., sent the letter Aug. 10 to FanDuel CEO Christian Genetski after the Philadelphia Inquirer reported that a FanDuel VIP manager had sent a personalized video from Phillies star Bryce Harper to Terry Thompson, a Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, resident with a gambling addiction.
In the 21-second clip, recorded through the celebrity video service Cameo, Harper wished Thompson an “extra-special Thanksgiving.” Thompson had wagered roughly $18.5 million with FanDuel and ultimately lost about $1.5 million; he has since sued FanDuel and DraftKings, alleging the companies used his data to coerce him into placing larger bets.
According to CBS News Philadelphia, Harper has said he was unaware of the video’s intended use and would not have recorded it had he known. “Had I known FanDuel’s true intent, I would not have made the video,” he wrote, adding that he also didn’t know about Thompson’s situation.
The lawmakers sent a separate letter the same day to MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred and MLBPA interim executive director Bruce Meyer, demanding an end to league and union policies that “enabled this type of predatory promotion” and asking whether players should be barred from personalized marketing tied to sportsbook VIP tiers.
MLB and the MLBPA face the same Aug. 24 deadline and, as of this writing, have not publicly responded. The timing carries added weight because the league’s collective bargaining agreement expires Dec. 1, and the MLBPA has previously pushed for more latitude, not less, for players to work with sportsbooks.
FanDuel defends responsible gambling safeguards
Cory Fox, FanDuel’s senior vice president of public policy and sustainability, wrote that VIP account managers are salaried employees who are not paid based on customers’ wagering volume or bet sizes. He said managers complete mandatory training on the VIP program and on recognizing signs of problem gambling, with quarterly refreshers as FanDuel adds new tools and processes.
On whether managers are trained to build personal relationships with clients to encourage more betting, Fox said those relationships instead give VIP customers more direct access to responsible-gambling tools. “Managers proactively discuss tools such as MySpend, limit setting, timeouts, and self-exclusion, and every email they send includes responsible gaming language and direct access to FanDuel’s responsible gaming tools,” he wrote, adding that the interactions also help FanDuel spot problem-gambling signs that might otherwise go unnoticed.
On safeguards against enticing at-risk bettors, Fox said FanDuel’s responsible-gaming team monitors indicators such as:
- Deposit and withdrawal history
- Sudden increases in wager size
- Canceled withdrawals
- In-app chat messages suggesting distress
Depending on the risk level, the company said it responds with anything from educational outreach to a mandatory limit, temporary suspension or permanent exclusion. Customers who disclose a gambling problem are “immediately and permanently excluded” from all FanDuel products and marketing, and the company said it offers complimentary mental health assessments through Kindbridge Behavioral Health.
Fox also pointed to “Play With a Plan,” a responsible-gaming marketing campaign FanDuel launched in January to promote its self-monitoring tools.
Congress presses FanDuel for details on VIP practices
FanDuel’s letter did not respond point by point, and it left five of the lawmakers’ eight questions unaddressed:
- Does FanDuel target VIP promotions and perks to bettors on a losing streak or who appear to be cutting back on wagering?
- How many times have VIP managers sent celebrity or athlete videos to keep a member engaged in gambling, and were those celebrities told how the videos would be used?
- How many VIP bettors who tried to cut back or close their accounts were instead offered exclusive perks, and how many kept betting as a result?
- What specific factors does FanDuel use to flag “potentially problematic” behavior, and why have those factors not prevented the VIP program from being used to encourage destructive gambling?
- Given the risks the VIP program poses to problem gamblers, will FanDuel suspend or terminate it?
MLB and MLBPA responses could shape sportsbook partnerships
Blumenthal, Tonko and Foushee are expected to press FanDuel further on the unanswered questions, and state regulators have opened separate inquiries into the company’s VIP practices that could lead to fines or mandated changes.
MLB and the MLBPA still owe lawmakers a response by Aug. 24, and how they answer could shape the debate over athlete-sportsbook partnerships as the league and union head into contract talks this fall.
