Last June, Amy Howe presided over a glitzy ribbon-cutting ceremony on Madison Avenue to mark the opening of FanDuel’s new office in the Flatiron District of Manhattan.
It was a propitious time for the CEO of the largest sportsbook in the US. Hours earlier, the Oklahoma City Thunder won the NBA Championship, capping a season accentuated by the company’s market-leading structural margin in the sport. At the time, Flutter traded around $270 a share, an increase of more than 30% from trading levels when she inherited the position in 2021.
Holding a pair of gigantic scissors, Howe posed for a picture with New York State Senator Joseph Addabbo, who lauded FanDuel on their significant contribution to the state economy. In addressing a packed room of loyal employees, Howe likened her excitement level to one that an astute student felt on the first day of school. At her peak, FanDuel outpaced the competition in online sports betting, holding a 50%+ share in numerous key markets.
Less than 12 months later, Howe severed ties with a company she guided through a volatile post-Covid period and a transformative listing on the New York Stock Exchange. Besieged by the rise of prediction markets, FanDuel, as with its peers in online sports betting, has hit the proverbial fork in the road. As part of a continued leadership transition at FanDuel, Flutter announced Howe’s departure on Wednesday during the company’s first-quarter earnings call.
Flutter’s stock price is down nearly 60% over the last 12 months, with losses accelerating since the beginning of 2026.
“With significant growth potential ahead, we have decided this is the right moment for new leadership,” said Peter Jackson, group CEO of Flutter. “I would like to thank Amy for her contribution to FanDuel and recognise the impact she had on the business.”
An emphasis on responsible gaming
At last June’s opening of the 36,000-square-foot office, Howe was joined by her top lieutenants, including: Christian Genetski, president at FanDuel, Andy Giancamilli, chief operating officer at FanDuel and Mike Raffensperger, president of the company’s sports division. Of the three, only Genetski remains. Raffensperger left the company in March, while Giancamilli retired from the company. Genetski, who joined FanDuel in 2015, will assume responsibility for leading the FanDuel business, Flutter wrote in a statement.
During her tenure, Howe received plaudits for her focus on responsible gaming. Under Howe, FanDuel implemented AI and machine learning into its responsible gaming framework, unveiling its “Play with a Plan” initiative this year that provided customers with tools to manage their spending.
When asked in March at a Semafor event if betting lines should be offered on high school sports, Howe replied, “I hope not”, adding that companies should make sure “kids consume our products in a responsible way…. For me personally, that’s going too far.”
Howe referenced her efforts on the area in a departing email to FanDuel staffers, noting that the company “set industry standards” for responsible gaming and player integrity throughout her reign. “While I will be moving onto a new chapter, I will always be cheering you on. I’m deeply grateful for the trust you placed in me, for the tremendous accomplishments we achieved,” she wrote.
According to a filing from the US Securities and Exchange Commission, Howe will receive 24 months of severance and a series of vested RSV and PSU options. The $4.37 million in salary compensation is roughly four times Howe’s annual base pay.
A leadership transition
Elevated to CEO in 2021 to replace predecessor Matt King, Howe also wrote that Genetski was the first person she met when she joined the company. From the outset, it was clear that the two shared the “same values” and passion for growing the business, she explained.
For his part, Genetski indicated that FanDuel rose to new heights across every “measurable metric” under Howe, which he ascribed to her dogged pursuit for attaining success. However, FanDuel has faced intense pressure from prediction markets, which has approached OSB-relevant scale, according to researchers at Eilers & Krejcik Gaming. Meanwhile, Kalshi has emerged as a scaled sports exchange, according to EKG, now ranking fourth among US operators on an adjusted handle per-adult basis.
Genetski has more than a decade’s worth of experience at FanDuel, including a stint as the company’s chief legal officer. In his letter to FanDuel staffers, Genetski stressed that periods of transition can be difficult, referencing the departure of the founders and a failed merger with DraftKings in the pre-PASPA era. “Our culture endures because our shared principles don’t waver – not during the best of times, and not when we face headwinds,” he wrote.
While Citizens analyst Jordan Bender predicts that the headwinds should “resolve in the coming quarters,” he cautioned that the management turnover adds a layer of questions to the US narrative. Nevertheless, he believes that the company’s strategy of promoting internally, should bring experience and deep knowledge of the business to the top of the organisation.
In addition, the company said that Dan Taylor, CEO of Flutter International, will assume the new title of president of Flutter Entertainment. “Dan’s track record of driving growth and executing complex strategies make him ideally suited for this expanded role,” Flutter wrote in the statement.
Sparse strategical change
In addressing the leadership transition, Jackson indicated that there will not be any change in the company’s strategy or posture with Howe’s departure. Furthermore, Jackson noted that he is “delighted,” that Genetski will assume leadership at FanDuel, adding that he is confident that the executive will strengthen the operator’s position as the leading sportsbook in the US.
But pressed further by analysts on if FanDuel should tinker with its playbook, Jackson responded that the company plans to revert back to a “customer-first approach”. One avenue to explore is a loyalty programme that Jackson previously outlined in March at a Morgan Stanley conference. As with a comparable rewards offering from rival DraftKings, FanDuel has launched an initiative that provides certain benefits to various customers on a tiered basis.
Customers in preferred tiers can gain access to features such as FanDuel’s BetProtect+, a full-game insurance feature for injuries with NBA player props. Concerns around injuries have provided a challenge for FanDuel, Jackson conceded, but he is encouraged with the new offering.
For instance, on Wednesday, the Philadelphia 76ers did not scratch Joel Embiid for Game 2 of its series against the New York Knicks until hours before the tip, leaving bettors scrambling. FanDuel plans to expand the loyalty programme over the next two quarters, according to Jackson.
An international playbook?
With stock dislocations across the industry, Jackson was asked about Flutter’s appetite for considering an acquisition in the coming months. As prediction markets continue to prosper, one option centres on a strategy to vertically integrate a predictions division with online sports betting. It is unclear if the company will explore the possibility in bringing on an executive with expertise in the online brokerage or financial services industries.
Among prediction newcomers, Robinhood is expected to hit $3 billion in April prediction market-volume, placing it as the company’s second-largest month for the segment. The figure represents a massive uptick from 2024 when monthly volume remained around $100 million. Others such as Goldman Sachs have explored a potential entry into prediction markets.
Ultimately, Jackson is confident that the leadership changes will sharpen the company’s focus on its US sports betting division while augmenting the connection between its North American and international segments.
Flutter has rich history in M&A, having brought aboard key executives through its 2020 merger with The Stars Group that included Australia’s Sportsbet. The same strategy was employed two years ago in the high-profile acquisition of Italian operator Snaitech. Dating back more than a decade, Betfair poached executive Breon Corcoran from rival Paddy Power in 2011, before the two merged in 2015.
“We are always open to M&A, if we think that the prices are right,” said Jackson, with the caveat that Flutter will focus on deleveraging in the US in the immediate future.
DraftKings, which reports first-quarter earnings on Thursday, is likely monitoring the developments across the industry closely. As with Flutter, DraftKings has been hit hard by the prediction market craze in suffering 25%+ stock declines over the last 12 months.
Earnings results
Flutter posted mixed results in the first quarter, topping analysts’ forecast in quarterly revenue but slightly missing estimates in adjusted earnings per share. For the three-month period ended 31 March, Flutter generated $4.3 billion in revenue, beating analysts’ expectations of $4.2 billion on the quarter. The company also reported adjusted EBITDA of $631 million, an increase of 2.4% from the same period last year.
Given the proliferation of prediction markets, analysts honed in on Flutter’s US segment during the call. Echoing his sentiments in Flutter’s 2025 full-year earnings presentation in March, Jackson downplayed concerns that FanDuel’s new prediction markets platform may be cannibalising its product on the OSB side.
Flutter’s US segment generated revenue of $1.76 billion, representing approximately 40.6% of total revenue for the quarter. By comparison, the segment in the US made up roughly 45.5% of all revenue in the first quarter of 2025 when the division generated about $1.66 billion.
More concerning is the slowdown in growth within the US sportsbook division, where revenue increased 1% to $1.14 billion. The modest growth was offset by a 19% spike in US iGaming revenue, which Jackson described as a positive development for the company. All told, Flutter’s US adjusted EBITDA of $119 million represented a 26.1% drop from the same quarter last year.
Flutter blamed the subpar US figures on gross margin compression and unfavourable sports outcomes. US gross margins declined by about 200 basis points year-over-year amid tax increases in New Jersey, Illinois and Louisiana, according to Flutter CFO Rob Coldrake.
Other takeaways
– Jackson is encouraged by FanDuel’s roll-out surrounding the company’s in-house market making platform. He noted that Flutter began market-making services on a third-party prediction platform in April, with expectations for launching the initial phase of the platform in the coming months.
– Jackson also expressed optimism with the company’s performance in Italy and UK iGaming, which took advantage of account migrations and proprietary product launches on the quarter. In Italy, Jackson said that Flutter is the top online operator as it continues to “outgrow the market”.
– In South America, Jackson remained pleased with Flutter’s growth among its Brazilian brands, with revenue soaring more than eight-fold to $74 million on the period. Flutter plans to unleash a new parlay product and promotional improvements ahead of the World Cup.
– In terms of forward outlook, Flutter cut its fiscal year 2026 guidance. The company now expects group revenue of $18.3 billion and adjusted EBITDA of $2.87 billion, down from previous guidance of $18.5 billion and $2.97 billion, respectively.
Flutter closed at $99.11 on Wednesday, down by more than 4% on the news of Howe’s departure. Shares rebounded in the after-hours session, moving back above the $100 threshold. Those levels were not foreseen by analysts last August when Flutter traded above $300 a share, in the weeks leading to the start of the NFL season.
Matt Rybaltowski
Matt is primarily responsible for long-form feature coverage on complex sports betting scandals. He also provides coverage on finance, M&A and other technological developments.
Original article: https://igamingbusiness.com/sports-betting/fanduel-enters-new-chapter-as-amy-howe-departs-after-five-years/
