DraftKings and FanDuel Exit Nevada, Leaving WSOP as the Sole Online Poker Operator

Why DraftKings and FanDuel Pulled Out

Last week, Nevada Gaming Control Board (NGCB) announced that it had accepted FanDuel parent Flutter’s surrender of its registration and approved DraftKings’ request to withdraw all pending Nevada applications. They spelled out their reason in the NGCB’s notice:

In other words, the companies wanted to launch prediction-market products, something that falls under unsanctioned gambling under Nevada law. FanDuel CEO Peter Jackson told investors the company had little choice:

How Prediction Markets Started the Conflict

Prediction markets allow users to trade on future outcomes, everything from elections to sports and economic indicators, in a way that blurs the line between financial products and gambling. Companies like Kalshi and Polymarket already operate nationally under federal oversight from the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC).

Nevada, however, takes the position that prediction markets basically amount to sports event wagering without a license.

The state has:

• Issued cease-and-desist letters
• Threatened disciplinary action for licensees
• Warned operators that offering “sports event contracts” violates state law

Lawsuits are ongoing in multiple states, but Nevada’s been the most aggressive one so far. As far as DraftKings and FanDuel, this means it’s impossible for them to pursue prediction markets and still remain licensed in the state of Nevada.

Where This Leaves Online Poker in Nevada

DraftKings and FanDuel were among the last realistic contenders to challenge WSOP’s monopoly. With both now gone, Nevada is left with:

• WSOP.com as the only regulated platform in the state
• No new entrants with a viable licensing path
• No active applications from major operators

PokerStars, which is owned by Flutter, also now has no route into the state, despite the end of Nevada’s former “bad actor” rule and its recent return to Las Vegas live events. DraftKings’ “Electric Poker” expansion, which reached Michigan, Pennsylvania, and New Jersey so far, also stops short of Nevada because the company chose prediction markets over their Nevada licensing.

BetMGM, which was at some point the most likely challenger, let its Nevada waiver lapse this year after a decade of delays. Rush Street Interactive’s BetRivers Poker is a theoretical option at this point, but without online casino revenue in Nevada, there’s little incentive to enter the state.

For players, this all leads to one conclusion, at least for now: Nevada will remain a one-operator market for the foreseeable future.