DraftKings and FanDuel Merge - Official Announcement Here

Ending a long line of speculation about a merger, DraftKings and FanDuel have officially united.

DraftKings co-founders Jason Robins, Paul Liberman, and Matt Kalish sent out an announcement about the merger earlier today. Here’s a look at the official announcement:

“Today, we are excited to inform you that DraftKings and FanDuel have reached a merger agreement.

“At DraftKings, we have always worked hard to bring the thrill of fantasy sports competition to you, in order to fulfill our goal of making your experience as a sports fan better than you ever imagined. With this merger, we hope to further accelerate our investments in product innovation, promotions, and a high-quality customer experience.

“This announcement will not impact your immediate experience playing fantasy sports with DraftKings, as the transaction is not officially closed. You will continue to receive the same access to our contests, customer , offers and experiences that you have become accustomed to. Consider it business as usual.

“Loyalty from our players has been the most critical element of DraftKings’ success over the past four years, and our team remains committed to continuing to improve. We want to keep hearing your ideas for how we can make DraftKings better. It will remain our mission to make your sports experience more thrilling, and our hope is that completing this merger will strengthen and enhance our ability to bring you the highest quality experience in fantasy sports and sports entertainment.”

Last year, FanDuel and DraftKings combined to spend over $500 million on advertising through the internet, TV, and radio. The advertising campaign was a success as far as increasing brand awareness, but it was also costly.

The costly advertising, combined with legal battles and other problems, quickly halted the growth of both DraftKings and FanDuel.

Since both companies have been fighting states to prove daily fantasy sports’ legality, many foresaw a merger between FanDuel and DraftKings.

As the Wall Street Journal reports, DraftKings CEO Jason Robins will be the new company’s CEO, while FanDuel CEO Nigel Eccles will serve as the chairman. The new board will feature three directors from DraftKings, three from FanDuel, and one independent director. Another compromise includes placing the company’s headquarters somewhere between their New York and Boston offices.

As the announcement points out, DraftKings and FanDuel believe that combining forces is the best way to accelerate growth.

“Neither company has been able to invest as much as we want to in a vast array of innovative ideas,” said Mr. Robins. “We really do share a common vision and really do have a boatload of ideas.”

Robbins did not offer details on what the new brand name will be or what either company’s valuation is prior to the merger.

The merger is expected to be officially completed in the middle of 2017.