Fanatics Sportsbook’s Fancash Lets Users Win Back Money With Every Sports Bet

Fanatics Sportsbook will offer users the chance to win Fancash prizes with every wager, no matter the result, as it prepares to expand its jurisdiction. 

Users have the opportunity to win up to 5% of their wagers back with Fancash, which is a currency that can be used at the Fanatics sportsbook or on Fanatics merchandise. In the same way bet slips show combined/parlay odds for multiple wagers, Fanatics will show the Fancash total for a bet slip with at least one selected wager.

Finding the ability to stand out from the competition is crucial for any sportsbook looking to upset a market that is increasingly in favor of the top operators. Fanatics’ plan is unique within the industry and is a nice place to start as the company looks to continue its growth.

Fanatics is one of several new and ambitious entrants in the legal sports betting scene. It bought PointsBet’s North American assets for $225 million earlier this summer and will soon expand to states where PointsBet is licensed.

That ambition has led to the introduction of Fancash, which was already featured in the company’s online shop. 

Fancash will be earned in the same way loyalty or reward points are accumulated with credit cards—and just like those cards, the amount of rewards will depend on where the money is going.

According to Fanatics’ website, users will earn 1% back for straight bets, 3% for parlays, and 5% for same-game parlays. So, for example…

• A user that bets $100 on the Kansas City Chiefs’ spread will receive $1 in Fancash.
• A user that bets $100 on a Los Angeles Lakers and Dallas Cowboys moneyline parlay will receive $3 in Fancash.
• A user that bets $100 on a parlay of Shohei Ohtani and Mike Trout both hitting a home run in the same game will receive $5 in Fancash.

A $20 same-game parlay on every game of the NFL’s opening weekend will earn a user $17 in Fancash. That Fancash can then be converted to spending power on the Fanatics website or converted to bonus bets, which can be used to place wagers and will win cash prizes if the bet they are assigned to hits.

The concepts of bonus bets and customer loyalty already existed within sports betting, but this is the first time that a sportsbook is highlighting real-money earnings potential with every bet and giving users the chance to cash that in for online memorabilia.

Fanatics has already launched its mobile sportsbook app in Ohio, Massachusetts, Maryland, and Tennessee. It also became the first retail sportsbook to sit inside an NFL stadium when it opened at FedEx Field in Landover, Maryland earlier this year.

Fanatics CEO Michael Rubin has been persistent and unwavering in promising to cultivate a top-tier experience for customers. That has led to Fanatics’ development within the sports betting industry and purchasing the catalogs of various companies, including trading card company Topps, with more expected growth still on the horizon. 

In June, during the bidding process for PointsBet’s assets, Rubin responded to an unexpected bid from DraftKings by saying that they had only made a “desperate move to slow down [Fanatics].”

“It’s a move to delay our ability to enter the market,” Rubin said. “I guess they are more concerned about us than I would have thought.”

The purchase granted Fanatics future access to the high-powered betting markets of New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania, among others. Fanatics will reportedly obtain the first of the PointsBet assets this month, though it’s unclear what and in which jurisdictions.

New York State Gaming Commission Executive Director Robert Williams said that Fanatics is also being considered for an operator’s license in five states, and that Colorado, Iowa, New Jersey, and Virginia are expected to reach decisions soon. 

The NFL season kicks off on September 7. NFL season is the busiest time of year for sportsbooks, so it wouldn’t be a surprise to see the company up the ante during the coming months.