Fanatics Australia: Jerseys Yes, Sportsbook No

Fanatics Australia: No Sportsbook, Just the Jerseys

Fanatics is not legal in Australia, because Fanatics Betting and Gaming never launched a sportsbook or casino there — the only thing wearing the Fanatics name in this country is merchandise. That mix-up has a real cause: Fanatics bought PointsBet's betting business, and PointsBet is an Australian company. This page untangles the two.

Legal status in Australia

Australia regulates online wagering at two levels. Federally, the Interactive Gambling Act 2001 bars online casino games and in-play sports betting outright, while pre-match sports betting is allowed only through an operator holding an Australian wagering licence — the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) enforces this nationally, including blocking unlicensed offshore sites. Licences themselves come from a state or territory racing and wagering authority, most commonly the Northern Territory; PointsBet Australia Pty Ltd has held an NT sports bookmaker licence since the old Racing and Betting Act 1983 era, carried over under the Racing and Wagering Act 2024. None of that licence belongs to Fanatics. When Fanatics Betting and Gaming closed its $225 million purchase of PointsBet in April 2024, the deal was explicitly US-only — PointsBet's board kept the Australian and Canadian wagering businesses out of the sale. PointsBet Australia has since changed hands again at the corporate level: Japan's MIXI completed an off-market takeover of PointsBet Holdings in September 2025, taking a majority stake, after a rival bid from Betr (formerly BlueBet) fell short. Fanatics has no equity position and no licence in either entity. Separately, Fanatics the retail company has a real and growing Australian footprint — a 10-year AFL partnership, an NRL deal with the Melbourne Storm, a Rugby Australia tie-up, and the online range for rebel sport since 2020 — all merchandise and sponsorship, none of it gambling.

State gambling authority: No Australian wagering authority has licensed Fanatics Betting and Gaming. Online sports betting generally is licensed state-by-state (commonly the Northern Territory) with the Interactive Gambling Act 2001 enforced nationally by ACMA.

Fanatics is not legal in Australia. Not restricted, not gray — there simply isn't a Fanatics sportsbook or casino here to license in the first place. What is here is jerseys, and that's exactly where the confusion starts.

The Deal Was US-Only. Full Stop.

Fanatics Betting and Gaming spent $225 million buying PointsBet in a deal that closed in April 2024. People remember that PointsBet is an Australian company — founded in Melbourne, listed on the ASX — and assume the purchase came with the home turf attached. It didn't. PointsBet's board carved the Australian and Canadian wagering businesses out of the sale before signing. Fanatics walked away with US state licenses. PointsBet kept its own front door.

Who actually runs PointsBet now: Japan's MIXI completed an off-market takeover of PointsBet Holdings in September 2025, taking a majority stake after Australian rival Betr (formerly BlueBet) made a competing bid that fell short. Fanatics has no stake in either company and never did.

Is Fanatics Legit in Australia? There's Nothing to Rate

Legitimacy is a question you ask about a product you can actually use. Fanatics Betting and Gaming's sportsbook runs in 23 US states plus Washington D.C., with a narrower casino footprint and a single Canadian province added in 2026. Australia isn't on either list. Loading Fanatics.com from an Australian IP address gets a geofenced US betting site, not a local sign-up page.

So What Is the Real PointsBet Licence Situation?

PointsBet Australia Pty Ltd holds a sports bookmaker licence that traces back to the old Northern Territory Racing Commission, under the now-repealed Racing and Betting Act 1983, and carried over intact when the Racing and Wagering Act 2024 took effect on July 1, 2024. That's the licence structure most big Australian wagering brands use — NT-based, with the federal Interactive Gambling Act 2001 layered on top, enforced nationally by ACMA, which bars online casino games and in-play betting outright and requires a licence for pre-match sports betting. None of that regulatory chain runs through Fanatics. It runs through PointsBet, now under MIXI.

Where Fanatics Actually Shows Up Down Under

The name is real here, just attached to a different business. The retail side of Fanatics has a 10-year AFL partnership, a Melbourne Storm deal in the NRL, an agreement with Rugby Australia, and has run the online range for rebel sport, one of the country's biggest sporting-goods retailers, since 2020. All merchandise and licensing. None of it touches a betting slip.

Who It Fits

Nobody looking for a bet. An Australian wanting to wager legally should go straight to a licensed Australian bookmaker — PointsBet included, under its current MIXI ownership — rather than wait on a Fanatics launch with no public timeline. Shoppers after AFL or NRL gear are in the right place already. Gambling, wherever it's actually offered, is entertainment, not income — and support is available through Gambling Help Online or 1800 858 858 for anyone in Australia who needs it.

Fanatics Sportsbook Australia — Frequently Asked Questions

Is Fanatics legal in Australia?

There is nothing to be legal or illegal about — Fanatics Betting and Gaming has no sportsbook or casino product in Australia, licensed or otherwise. The Fanatics name that Australians see on AFL and NRL merchandise belongs to the retail side of the company, which has nothing to do with wagering.

Is Fanatics the same company as PointsBet in Australia?

No, and this is the exact confusion the search makes. Fanatics bought PointsBet's US sportsbook business for $225 million in a deal that closed April 2024 — explicitly not including PointsBet's home market. PointsBet Australia Pty Ltd kept its NT bookmaker licence and its own corporate life, and is now majority-owned by Japan's MIXI after a takeover that closed in September 2025. Fanatics owns none of it.

Is Fanatics safe for Australians to use?

There's no Fanatics betting account for an Australian to open, so the safety question doesn't apply the way it would for a live operator. Fanatics.com's sportsbook is geofenced to licensed US states; an Australian IP address won't get a sign-up flow. The retail store does ship product, but that's a shopping question, not a gambling one.

Why does Fanatics show up in searches with PointsBet and AFL together?

Two unrelated things happen to share a name. Fanatics bought PointsBet's US wagering operations — a corporate deal Australians would reasonably associate with PointsBet, an Australian-founded brand. Separately, Fanatics the merchandiser signed a 10-year AFL licensing deal, an NRL partnership with the Melbourne Storm, and a Rugby Australia agreement, none of which involve a bet being placed.

Will Fanatics launch a sportsbook in Australia?

Nothing public points that way. Fanatics Betting and Gaming's expansion talk has centered on new US states and, since 2026, a single Canadian province through its casino product — not Australia. Getting into Australian wagering would mean acquiring or newly securing a state or territory licence, something not currently on the record for Fanatics.