FanDuel Delaware: Safe? There’s No FanDuel Book Here

FanDuel Delaware sports betting isn’t something you can actually sign up for — the Delaware Lottery runs the entire online market through one contracted operator, and that contract has belonged to BetRivers since early 2024. FanDuel’s only live product in the state is daily fantasy sports, under a 2017 law passed after the state briefly ordered the company to stop operating.

Legal status in Delaware

Delaware was actually first to market after the 2018 Murphy v. NCAA ruling, opening single-game sports betting at its three casinos — Delaware Park, Bally’s Dover (then Dover Downs), and Harrington Raceway — on June 5, 2018, days ahead of New Jersey. But Delaware never built an open, multi-operator licensing market like New Jersey or Pennsylvania did. The Delaware Lottery Office, a division of the state Department of Finance, holds a legal monopoly over sports wagering and contracts with a single technology partner to run it; the Division of Gaming Enforcement handles licensing background checks. Mobile betting didn’t launch until years after retail, and when it did, the Lottery’s partner was Rush Street Interactive’s BetRivers brand — soft-launching December 27, 2023 and going fully live January 3, 2024. FanDuel holds no sports betting license in Delaware and never has; the brand and DraftKings are locked out of the online market entirely, with some betting-content sites noting both companies’ apps block Delaware bets on sight. A 2024 bill, HB 365 from Rep. Franklin Cooke, would have let each of the three casinos add up to two online partners of their own choosing — potentially opening a door for FanDuel — but it did not pass before that General Assembly session ended, and no confirmed successor bill had moved as of this writing. Daily fantasy sports is a separate legal track: Delaware’s AG office ordered DraftKings, FanDuel, and Yahoo to stop taking real-money entries in 2016, and lawmakers responded in 2017 with HB 249, which legalized and taxed paid DFS contests and put the Division of Gaming Enforcement in charge of oversight. Both companies came back under that law, and it remains Delaware’s functioning FanDuel product today.

State gambling authority: Delaware Lottery Office (Department of Finance) licenses and contracts the sports betting monopoly; the Division of Gaming Enforcement handles background checks and oversees daily fantasy sports under the 2017 law.

FanDuel Delaware sports betting sounds like it should exist — Delaware was the first state in the country to take a legal single-game bet after the Supreme Court struck down PASPA in 2018, days ahead of even New Jersey. But being first didn't mean building an open market. Delaware runs sports wagering as a state lottery monopoly, and the single company holding that contract has never been FanDuel.

First to Launch, Last to Open Up

Retail sports betting began at Delaware Park, Dover Downs (now Bally's Dover), and Harrington Raceway on June 5, 2018. Mobile wagering took years longer to arrive, and when the Delaware Lottery finally brought it online, it picked one technology partner rather than licensing several books the way Pennsylvania or Michigan did. That partner is Rush Street Interactive's BetRivers brand, which soft-launched December 27, 2023 and went fully live January 3, 2024. FanDuel was never in the running for a contract that was never put out to open competition.

June 5, 2018: retail betting launches at Delaware's three casinos. Dec. 27, 2023: BetRivers soft-launches as the Lottery's exclusive mobile partner. Jan. 3, 2024: BetRivers goes fully live. FanDuel appears in none of these dates.

Is FanDuel Legal in Delaware?

Not for sports betting or casino play. The Delaware Lottery Office, a division of the Department of Finance, holds the legal monopoly on both, with the Division of Gaming Enforcement running license background checks behind it. A reader asking whether FanDuel is legal here is really asking whether Delaware has opened its one contract to a second vendor — and as of this writing, it hasn't. Some betting-content sites go further and note that FanDuel's own app actively blocks bets placed from inside Delaware, since there is no license to place them under.

A 2016 Stumble, a 2017 Law

FanDuel does have real history in Delaware, just not a sportsbook one. In 2016, the state attorney general's office sent FanDuel, DraftKings, and Yahoo letters saying their paid daily fantasy contests weren't permitted under existing law and telling them to stop taking Delaware entries. All three exited. The legislature revisited the issue in 2017 and passed HB 249, legalizing and taxing paid DFS contests and putting the Division of Gaming Enforcement in charge of licensing — with a $50,000 fee that effectively limited the market to large operators. FanDuel came back under that law and has operated DFS in Delaware since.

Why FanDuel still isn't in sports betting: Rep. Franklin Cooke introduced HB 365 in April 2024, which would have let each of the three casinos add up to two online sportsbook partners of their own choosing — a path that could include FanDuel. The bill did not pass before that General Assembly session ended, and no confirmed successor had advanced as of this writing. Until something like it passes, BetRivers keeps the only contract.

Is FanDuel Safe in Delaware?

For daily fantasy, yes — it operates under a real state license and Division of Gaming Enforcement oversight, the same regulator that vets Delaware's casino and lottery operations. For sports betting, the question doesn't apply, because there's no FanDuel account to fund. The safer comparison is BetRivers, which carries the actual state contract and the oversight that comes with it.

Who It Fits

A Delaware resident who wants FanDuel specifically has one working option: daily fantasy sports, legal since the 2017 law. Anyone chasing a FanDuel sportsbook or casino account is chasing a product that doesn't exist here, regardless of how large FanDuel is in neighboring states. Betting, wherever it's actually licensed, is entertainment, not income — and 1-800-GAMBLER is there if it stops feeling that way.

FanDuel Delaware — Frequently Asked Questions

Is FanDuel legal in Delaware?

Not as a sportsbook or casino. Delaware runs online sports betting as a state lottery monopoly with a single contracted operator — BetRivers, via Rush Street Interactive, since January 2024 — and FanDuel has never held that contract. FanDuel daily fantasy sports is legal and separately regulated under a 2017 state law.

Is FanDuel legit, or did it do something wrong in Delaware?

FanDuel didn’t do anything wrong — it’s a licensed operator in two dozen other states. Delaware simply never opened its sports betting market to multiple operators the way most states did. The one real blemish is DFS-specific: in 2016 the state attorney general told FanDuel (and DraftKings and Yahoo) to stop taking paid entries pending legislation, and FanDuel exited until Delaware passed HB 249 in 2017 and let it back in under a license.

Is it safe to use FanDuel in Delaware?

There’s no FanDuel sportsbook or casino account to open in Delaware, so that question only applies to its daily fantasy product, which operates under Division of Gaming Enforcement oversight and a $50,000 license fee most small operators can’t absorb. The state’s actual sports betting app, BetRivers, is the one running under the Lottery’s own contract and regulatory umbrella.

Why can’t I use the FanDuel app to bet on sports in Delaware?

Because the Delaware Lottery doesn’t license individual sportsbooks — it owns the market and hires one vendor to run it. That vendor is BetRivers. Some trackers note that FanDuel’s and DraftKings’ own apps geofence Delaware out entirely, since neither company has any product to offer there.

Will FanDuel ever get a Delaware sportsbook license?

Possibly, if the market structure changes. Rep. Franklin Cooke’s HB 365 would have let each of Delaware’s three casinos bring on up to two online sports betting partners of their own, which could include FanDuel — but it stalled when the 2024 General Assembly session ended, and no replacement bill had cleared committee as of this writing.

Can I play FanDuel daily fantasy sports in Delaware?

Yes. After a 2016 cease-and-desist from the state AG’s office, Delaware passed HB 249 in 2017 to legalize and tax paid-entry fantasy contests under Division of Gaming Enforcement oversight, and FanDuel reentered the state under that law. It’s the one FanDuel product a Delaware resident can actually use today.

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