In the newly created role, Noifeld, who will be based in the company’s New York headquarters, is to gain oversight of FanDuel’s igaming business.

“Asaf brings deep experience building online casino businesses across the globe,” said Amy Howe, President & Chief Executive Officer for FanDuel Group. 

“I am delighted to add him to our leadership team, as he has extensive knowledge in the space which will help grow our online casino business in North America.”

Noifeld takes up the position from elsewhere within the Flutter network, after joining from PokerStars where he served as Managing Director of PokerStars Casino.

He worked for the brand for a total of eight years and is praised as “building the company’s online casino business from scratch and spearheading initiatives to expand the marketing and product functions”.

FanDuel’s igaming entity is currently live in New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Michigan, West Virginia and Ontario, Canada, while the group also operates the Stardust Casino brand in the Garden State and the Mohegan Sun Casino brand in Connecticut. 

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In the newly created role, Hooper will be responsible for developing and implementing FanDuel’s long-term strategy in Canada, in keeping with the nation’s regulatory and legalisation process within each province. 

He will report directly to FanDuel CEO Amy Howe effective immediately, after joining FanDuel Group from Deloitte Canada where he most recently served as a partner focused on the cannabis industry.

“It is an incredible time to be a part of the growing sports gaming industry, and I look forward to joining Amy and the team as we bring the number one sportsbook to Canada,” said Hooper. “I am proud to be joining the industry leader at such a momentous time.”

Hooper joins FanDuel Group with over 30 years of driving large-scale transformation across multiple consumer-driven industries. 

He served as the president and CEO of Cannabis Compliance until December 2019, when the firm was acquired by Deloitte. Operating as a startup in the highly regulated cannabis industry, Hooper scaled the company to be at the forefront and a leader in the regulatory and operational consulting space.

Prior to this, Hooper held multiple leadership roles at Rogers Communications. In his most recent position as chief brand officer, he helped deliver all key business, customer satisfaction, and brand metrics over a three-year turnaround period, including a share price growth of 50 per cent, and played a leadership role in driving the digital transformation to improve the customer experience. 

Prior to his tenure at Rogers, Hooper spent 13 years at PepsiCo Canada, where he held chief marketing officer roles at both PepsiCo Foods and PepsiCo Beverages and drove two key business integrations. 

“Dale has a proven track record running high growth enterprises along with strong relationships that will be invaluable to our success in Canada,” added Howe.

“He is a respected leader known for his ability to scale business units effectively, a critical skill set, as we aim to bring the excitement of our sportsbook and igaming products to Canadian citizens. It’s with great excitement that I welcome him to our team.”

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Joining them in the running for the leading honours are GAN, Genius Sports, Global Payments Gaming Solutions, IGT, IWG, Nuvei, OneComply, Optimove, Pariplay, Scientific Games, Sightline Payments, Sportradar, Spotlight Sports Group, and White Hat Gaming, who have each landed nominations in multiple supplier categories. 

The winners of all 23 awards will be announced at a ceremony in the stylish setting of The Edison Ballroom in New York City on December 2, 2021, in front of an audience of 500 senior executives from the industry’s most successful companies. 

The SBC Awards North America ceremony is on the final evening of SBC Summit North America, the biggest conference and trade show for the sports betting and igaming industries in the US and Canada, which takes place at Meadowlands Exposition Center in New Jersey on November 30 – December 2.

In the prestigious Sportsbook of the Year category, Circa Resort & Casino, Coolbet, DraftKings, FanDuel Group, Penn National Gaming’s Barstool Sportsbook, PointsBet, and Sports Interaction will contest the prize, while Bally’s Corporation, BetMGM, and Rush Street Interactive are in the running for the Casino Operator of the Year honour. 

After a year of heavy investment by operators in brand ambassadors and partnerships with sports teams, the shortlist for the Marketing Campaign & Sponsorship of the Year award features Hard Rock Casino/A Game Above, PointsBet, Strendus from Logrand Entertainment Group, Tipico/Vegas Kings, and Unibet. 

The awards also celebrate the industry’s challenger brands and the excellence of Bally’s Interactive, Carousel Group’s MaximBet, PointsBet, PrizePicks, Sporttrade, Strendus, and theScore is recognized on the shortlist for the Rising Star of the Year trophy. 

Rasmus Sojmark, founder and CEO of SBC, said: “The growth of the sports betting and online gambling industry in the US over the past two years has been phenomenal, and the quality of the entries for the operator categories of the SBC Awards North America demonstrates why.

“Our expert judges were massively impressed by what they saw and faced a difficult task to pick out the most creative, innovative, and commercially successful brands for the shortlists. Simply making the cut is a real mark of excellence, so it will be fascinating to see which companies emerge as the big winners on the night.” 

The shortlists for the ten supplier awards showcase the full range of talent in the sports betting, casino, lottery, and payments technology industries, as they encompass global brands through to innovative smaller companies that are fast making a name for themselves thanks to their exceptional products.

Suppliers in the running for prizes on the night include ArdentSky, Boom Entertainment, Bragg Gaming Group, Chalkline, Compliable, Continent 8 Technologies, Ely’s Game Technology, Evolution Group, Fiserv, GTG Network, High 5 Games, HPL Digital Sport, iConvert, Incentive Games, Incubeta,Konami Gaming, Level Media, Match52, OtherLevels, Push Technology, Quarter4, Swish Analytics, USAbility, XB Net, and Xtremepush. 

Catena Media, Gambling.com Group, and MediaTroopers lead the way in the affiliate section of the Awards, with nominations in both categories. Joining them on the Sports Affiliate Year of shortlist are Better Collective, Betting Hero, Oddspedia, Spotlight Sports Group, and VSiN. 

They face competition for Casino Affiliate of the Year from Brian Christopher Slots, Great.com, iBet Digital, and Intelitics.

Sojmark added: “The standard of the products offered and service levels delivered by the companies who have made the shortlists in the supplier and affiliate categories provides a further explanation for why the industry has made such rapid progress in the region.

“This really is a really exciting, fast-growing high-tech industry and we’ll see many of the most advanced companies in it recognized at the SBC North America Awards ceremony.”

To view the shortlists for all 23 of the awards, please click here.

For information about sponsorship opportunities at the SBC Awards North America ceremony or to book a table, please contact sales@sbcgaming.com. 

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The sportsbook at Suquamish Clearwater Casino Resort will feature three live betting windows and twelve self-service betting terminal kiosks. 

“We are looking forward to offering sports wagering at our property for the first time and to making the Suquamish Clearwater Casino Resort Washington’s premier destination for sports betting and the best game-day experience for all of our casino guests,” commented Greg George, Port Madison Enterprises board president. 

Sports bettors and guests visiting the casino resort will be able to enjoy a FanDuel Sportsbook retail experience, featuring a game-day atmosphere with wagering options available across all major sporting events. 

Leonard Forsman, chairman of the suquamish tribe, remarked: “We are so pleased with the recent addition of sports wagering to our gaming compact, making sports betting legal in the state for the first time. 

“Revenue from sports wagering will help support the Suquamish Tribe’s important governmental services offered to both tribal members and the local non-tribal community.”

The sportsbook will have 17 screens to feature all of the game-day action, including a 32”x9” HD video wall. Additionally, three self-service betting kiosks will be located in the casino’s Beach Rock Music and Sports Lounge, featuring 11 screens, a 24.5”x11.5” screen and seating for over 250 people.

“We are excited to partner with Port Madison Enterprises and the Suquamish Tribe to bring America’s number one sportsbook to the state of Washington,” Keith Wall, vice president of retail, FanDuel Group, said of the group’s latest link-up.

“The Suquamish Clearwater Casino Resort will be a truly impressive location for the west coast expansion of our FanDuel Sportsbook retail operations.”

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This will see Howe add the interim CEO duties to her existing role as president, with continued responsibility for leading the company’s core commercial functions across its sportsbook, casino, racing, and daily fantasy units. 

She will oversee the company’s operational, product, marketing, legal, regulatory, and compliance units. Howe replaces Matt King, who, pursuant to an announcement by Flutter on May 12, is leaving the company on July 16.

“Matt leaves the business in a position of real strength, and we wish him well for the future,” said Peter Jackson, global chief executive of Flutter Entertainment. 

“The interim appointment of Amy, working alongside the wider FanDuel leadership team, will support the key focus on growing the business and retaining our number one position in the US market.”

Howe joined FanDuel Group in February 2021 from Live Nation Entertainment, where she held several positions of increasing authority culminating as global chief operating officer of Ticketmaster, the largest division of the group. 

During her tenure, she led a transformation and modernisation of the company’s ticketing platform, doubling its growth in gross ticketing value and growing the mobile app install base by 400 per cent. Before Live Nation Entertainment, Howe enjoyed a distinguished career as a partner at McKinsey & Company.  

Howe commented: “Together with our talented leadership team and organisation, I am focused on continuing the momentum we have built across the business. 

“I am confident that our unique advantages in product innovation, marketing, operational excellence, and wide market access will allow us to flourish as online gaming grows across the US.”

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During his time in the position, within which he has agreed to remain while a search process is undertaken to appoint a successor, FanDuel lauds King as overseeing “the transformation of the business from online daily fantasy sports operator to the market leader in US online sports betting and gaming”.

King served as chief financial officer of FanDuel from 2014-2016, before becoming an equity partner and the president of regional operations and corporate development at ‎Cottingham & Butler.

He re-joined FanDuel in November 2017 when Nigel Eccles, who co-founded the company in 2009, announced a decision to step down from the board of directors and leave the group.

“It has been a privilege to lead FanDuel over the last 4 years through what has been an incredibly exciting period for the company,” King noted.

“With FanDuel well positioned for the next chapter of its growth and always an entrepreneur at heart, now is the time for me to take on new opportunities as the next step in my career. 

“I want to thank Peter and the whole Flutter team for their unwavering support since acquiring FanDuel three years ago. 

“I have no doubt that the business will continue to go from strength to strength and I wish all of my colleagues the very best for the future as they pursue the next stage of growth.”

As previously announced, the Flutter board has been assessing the potential merits of listing a small stake in FanDuel in the US, with the firm last month saying that “no decision has yet been made”.

Following the news of King’s impending exit, Flutter acknowledges that it “will affect the timing of any potential US listing” but adds that the board will continue to keep the option under review.

Peter Jackson, CEO of Flutter Entertainment, explained: “I would like to take this opportunity to thank Matt for his considerable contribution in helping to make FanDuel the US market leader it is today. 

“FanDuel has achieved so much in the three years since PASPA was repealed and that is due in no small part to Matt’s leadership and the strong team built around him. While we will be sorry to see him leave, he leaves the business in great shape. 

“We are starting the process of looking for a new CEO for FanDuel and we remain focused on maintaining our leadership position in the US market.”

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Responding to media reports of the legal dispute, Fox, which has an option to acquire a stake in the US sports betting and gaming brand in July, said that it had made its move to acquire an 18.6 per cent ownership “for the same price that Flutter paid for that interest in December 2020”.

This saw Flutter increase its interests in FanDuel to 95 per cent after the acquisition of a $4.175bn (£3.131bn) 37.2 per cent share in the group that was previously held by KKR-led consortium Fastball Holdings. 

Responding to the legal manoeuvres, Flutter has labelled Fox’s position as “incorrect” and “without merit,” stating that it would “represent a windfall to Fox compared to the fair market valuation as of July 2021”.

In its own statement, Flutter commented: “Under the terms of Flutter’s agreement with Fox Corporation, an arbitration mechanism was put in place at the time of The Stars Group merger announcement to be conducted in the event of a disagreement between the two parties relating to the option. That now being the case, such a process has been initiated by Fox.”

Adding: “Flutter will not allow Fox’s filing, which is without merit, to distract from its business and will vigorously defend its position in the arbitration.”

Early in March 2021, Peter Jackson, Flutter CEO, suggested that the group would honour its commitment to the option, but emphasised that Fox would “have to pay the fair market value” in an earnings call.

He explained: “In terms of the mechanism for dealing with Fox and why we negotiated with them as part of the purchase or the deal we did with The Stars Group, we haven’t put anything formal in place at this moment, but we will honour our commitment to give Fox an option to acquire 18.6 per cent of FanDuel at fair market value in July 2021. 

“To be clear on the valuation, Fox will have to pay the fair market value, which is different from the negotiated price agreed between Flutter and Fastball, which reflected the specific circumstances that Fastball found itself in. The valuation will be carried out in the same manner that would have occurred had Fastball still owned the stake.”

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As part of its engagement strategy, the company is making a multi-million-dollar commitment of its media inventory, as well as league and team assets, and directing them towards responsible gaming messaging. 

FanDuel will also work with its league, team and media partners to grow the campaign across television, radio, digital and in-venue media, with it hoped that responsible gaming content will be live in May 2021.

“As the mobile gaming industry leader in the US, we believe promoting responsible gaming behaviours is a core tenet of growing our business and the industry as a whole,” said Matt King, CEO of FanDuel Group. 

“We are not only going to commit substantial FanDuel resources to promote Have a Game Plan, but we intend to build a consortium of partners throughout the sports and gaming business to scale this initiative and we encourage other operators to join us.”

Through Have a Game Plan, the AGA and its partners provide consumers a state-by-state guide on where to find legal operators, spotlight the basics of responsible sports betting and raise awareness on signs of problem gambling.

“FanDuel’s commitment to support and grow Have a Game Plan couldn’t come at a better time,” added Bill Miller AGA President and CEO. “Responsibility to our customers has always been a pillar of AGA member operations. 

“Extending this to meet the new realities of an expanded sports betting ecosystem is going to require full collaboration with everyone involved in it – gaming operators, media companies and leagues and teams. We’re excited to have a partner like FanDuel to help extend this important initiative.”

The AGA launched Have a Game Plan in late 2019 to educate sports fans on the importance of responsible sports betting. As the first sportsbook partner involved in the campaign, FanDuel joins NASCAR, the NHL, the PGA Tour, Monumental Sports and Entertainment and the Vegas Golden Knights as official campaign partners.

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Under the terms of the agreement, and pending regulatory approval in the US, FanDuel customers who self-exclude will be offered a free Gamban subscription, which proactively blocks users from accessing thousands of gambling sites easily on up to 15 personal devices. 

The service will not only block each FanDuel Group site, but all real money gaming websites including legal and offshore sportsbooks, online casinos, poker sites, social gaming sites, and esports sites from use.

“This is a massive moment for the industry and one we’ve been pushing to achieve since the launch of Gamban,” said Jack Symons, founder of Gamban.  

“As the largest real money gaming provider in the United States, FanDuel Group is making a statement of intent and throwing down the gauntlet to operators across the industry to offer self-exclusion support for their vulnerable customers.”

FanDuel’s Gamban partnership comes on the heels of the company becoming the first mobile operator to make a multi-million dollar commitment to the American Gaming Association’s ‘Have a Game Plan’ campaign, which aims to educate consumers on how to bet responsibly and within limits.   

“Educating customers about the importance of gambling responsibly and within limits is a business imperative and ethically the right thing to do,” said Carolyn Renzin, chief risk and compliance officer of FanDuel Group. 

“We already offer a suite of tools to help customers enjoy sports betting responsibly. Offering Gamban’s software to those customers signalling they need help adds another layer of protection for our customers, our program, and to the industry.”

Gamban also boasts a partnership with FanDuel Group’s parent company, Flutter Entertainment, to deploy its software in Europe. FanDuel Group has extended the partnership in North America to include FanDuel, TVG, Betfair, Stardust, FoxBet, PokerStars and Stars Casino.

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The venue, FanDuel’s second land-based sportsbook in the state after the Meadowlands Racetrack, and first in Atlantic City, features a central 25-foot-wide LED video wall, flanked by two 10-foot-wide LED video walls on either side and ten video displays.

Furthermore, patrons can place sports wagers at five betting windows or use one of twenty IGT PlaySports self-serve betting kiosks. 

“The new FanDuel Sportsbook at Bally’s AC is the fifth retail sportsbook we have opened in the last couple years,” says George Papanier, president and chief executive officer of Bally’s Corporation.

“We now operate sportsbooks in Rhode Island, Colorado, Delaware, Mississippi, and New Jersey – we are thrilled to be in this market and to give our guests an incredible sportsbook experience, right off the boardwalk and our gaming floor.”

The partnership between Bally’s and FanDuel began in May with the launch of an online and mobile sportsbook in Colorado. This latest introduction becomes the latter’s sixteenth retail sportsbook in the US.

“We are privileged to partner with Bally’s Corporation to open our FanDuel Sportsbook inside Bally’s Atlantic City”, said Andrew Kleiman, senior director of operations at FanDuel Group. 

“The legacy of Atlantic City and excitement of being steps away from the boardwalk creates a unique atmosphere for our customers. We look forward to a successful future with our new partner and community.”

The two parties rolled-out a temporary sports betting venue at the property in December 2020, with the sportsbook development representing the first capital improvement project at the property after Bally’s completed the long-mooted purchase one month earlier.

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