On Wednesday, FanDuel bet on itself to hit the jackpot in the domestic online gambling space with the launch of the brand’s first standalone casino app in Pennsylvania.
The company started life as a daily fantasy sports operator, and while FanDuel always ran a long second to DraftKings in the DFS market, it pivoted to legal US sports betting in 2018 and immediately became the king of the hill.
In New Jersey, FanDuel’s flagship sportsbook at The Meadowlands pulls in more than half of the state’s entire betting handle, and its sports betting properties in other states have done well, too.
DraftKings trails FanDuel across the (betting) board when it comes to wagering on real sports.
However, FanDuel has not been content to take action only on sporting events, which is proving a shrewd move given the state of sports wagering in the US and internationally during the worldwide coronavirus pandemic.
With no sports, there are no sports to bet on.
It is in this context that FanDuel’s move to become a bona fide online casino for US gamblers is already paying off.
Partnered with the Valley Forge Casino and Boyd Gaming, the FanDuel Casino iPhone app and Android app are both live as of June 24, offering players in the state access to online slots, video poker, blackjack, and roulette, with more games to come in the future.
Per FanDuel Casino GM and VP Jesse Chemtob, the state represents a jumping off point for a broader casino gambling initiative.
“Pennsylvania is a really exciting state for us as it represents the first state where we’ve introduced FanDuel Casino alongside our FanDuel Sportsbook product. We’ve seen great engagement and interest with our FanDuel Casino product amongst our sportsbook customers to date and we view this product evolution as a natural next step to provide a full-service gaming experience to our Pennsylvania customers.”
For those who live in the Keystone State, the FanDuel mobile app can be played anywhere within PA borders. Even visitors to the state can install the app on their iPads, iPhones, and Android devices.
However, players will only be able to access the app – and gamble for real money – if they’re physically inside Pennsylvania.
While there is no federal law barring anyone from playing at the FanDuel Casino from outside the state, PA gambling laws currently require geo-fencing and identity confirmation, limiting the app’s access to those inside Pennsylvania’s own jurisdiction.
If you’re eligible to join, the FanDuel Casino app can be downloaded now from the App Store or Google Play, and signing up is fast and free.
Of course, only three states actually have full online casino gambling of any kind: Delaware, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania. Thus, for the vast majority of online gambling enthusiasts, the only legal option is to use an offshore casino that accepts residents from the USA.
These venues are legal to access and use, as there are no federal laws barring private citizens from freely joining the sites and using them to gamble for real money.
Best of all, while services like FanDuel’s online casino app require participants to be 21 and up per PA law, offshore online casinos will accept members at just 18-plus.
That said, if you live in Washington or Connecticut, state laws in both do bar online gambling, though the mandates are historically unenforced. You can still play at offshore casinos from WA and CT, but we recommend always abiding by all local gambling restrictions.