On Wednesday, the company's prediction markets platform, Fanatics Markets, went live in ten states, defeating competitors DraftKings and FanDuel in the process.

Fanatics Markets' launch comes roughly two weeks after the massive sports betting and clothing company announced that it was collaborating with Crypto.com, one of the first businesses to offer sports event contracts, to launch an event contracts platform in a few states. Alaska, Delaware, Hawaii, Idaho, Maine, New Hampshire, North Dakota, Rhode Island, South Dakota, and Utah saw the launch of the mobile application today.

"Fanatics Markets is uniquely positioned to bring prediction markets to the mainstream and will launch in two phases,” said the company in a statement. “Phase One is live today with event contracts for sports, finance, economics and politics. Phase Two, which is launching early next year, will see Fanatics Markets expand into event contracts related to crypto, stocks/IPOs, climate, pop culture, tech/AI, movies and music.”

Fanatics, a privately held company, has been rising in the US online sports betting market, suggesting it could be a significant force in the sports event contracts market.

Markets for Fanatics Will Open in Texas and California

As previously mentioned, Fanatics Markets debuted today in ten states, but it will soon expand to twenty-four, including Texas and California. Not only are those the two most populated states, but neither of them allows sports betting, which makes that remarkable.

Fanatics Markets will open locations in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Minnesota, Mississippi, Nebraska, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Carolina, Washington, and Wisconsin in addition to California and Texas. This group includes states where Native American tribes regulate the expansion of gaming, states that do not currently permit sports betting, and sports betting monopolies like Florida and Oregon.

Like other prediction market operators, Fanatics Markets may face legal issues in a number of jurisdictions, especially those with well-known tribal gaming operations. There are additional regulatory concerns to take into account.

Regulators in several states have cautioned licensed sportsbooks that they risk losing their licensing in those states if they get into event contracts, even if those states are avoided.

Fans Win US PM Debut Against Rivals

Fanatics defeated sports betting rivals DraftKings and FanDuel in the US prediction markets, which might be a cherry on top for the business. A similar DraftKings product is scheduled to be released in the upcoming months, and FanDuel Predicts, a stand-alone mobile app, is anticipated to emerge at some point this month.

"The Fanatics Markets app is now available on iOS and Android. Fanatics Markets allows users to trade contracts across sports, finance, economics, and politics, from whether a team will score more than 20 points to if the Fed will decrease interest rates,” according to the statement.

Fanatics Markets debuted the day after Kalshi, the largest prediction market by volume, secured $1 billion in funding and an agreement with CNN, which is probably just a coincidence.