PrizePicks Founder: Won't Let DraftKings and FanDuel Stifle Our Growth

Adam Wexler, founder and Chief executive of the largest daily fantasy sports company, PrizePicks, says his company is fully committed to the great city of Atlanta. 

The company plans to lease the top floor of the 15-story Star Metals building in West Midtown, with occupants that currently include Nike.   Many of the new hires are expected to work at this location. Wexler said in an interview that putting the company’s hub in Atlanta puts it at a “strategic competitive advantage” at the nexus of sports, music and culture.

Wexler spoke candidly about how the competition is going above and beyond just competing in states where Prizepicks operates along side legal sports betting.

"Despite the continued attempts from DraftKings and FanDuel to stifle our growth, PrizePicks is not slowing down. When Jay Deuskar and I started working on PrizePicks in the Fall of 2017, we set out to bring a big B2C technology win to our hometown of Atlanta."

Industry observers and companies like DraftKings and FanDuel see the PrizePicks pick'em product similar to that of player parlays found at sportsbooks.  The contest requires individuals to bet on at least two players performance either over or under a posted total.

"As a career-long entrepreneur in Georgia, I watched LA get a lot of recognition last decade for producing the likes of Snapchat, Tinder & GoodRx, and it irked me to see a city known for other industries become a darling in tech circles overnight. Atlanta had a ton of B2B success stories over the years and always had the ingredients to become a Top 5 technology community in the country, but one of the bigger things missing were those notable consumer-facing victories.

"When I grew up, I recall WebMD, Weather & Mindspring put us on the map in the Late-90s, but other than some good notoriety for Scoutmob & Yik Yak a decade back, it's been a minute since Atlanta was known for those consumer tech Ws.

"We take great pride in carrying the torch forward with the likes of Greenlight and Bark in this 2020s wave, and look forward to the day when Atlanta gets it's proper due and Top 5 designation. #ATL #LFG."

So far, DraftKing's and FanDuel's efforts have worked in some states. 

Arkansas is among the latest states to issue the company a warning, but that move can't be blamed on DraftKings or FanDuel.

The only three apps that operate here are proprietary: Betly, BetSaracen and Oaklawn Sports.  The latter two resorts will utilize odds courtesy of Kambi and IGT.  Online sports betting hasn't even launched here as of yet.

"Fantasy sports operators offer a version of the traditional fantasy football concept with a consumer creating a team and points being assigned based on performance. The consumer creating the best-performing team is rewarded," The Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration (DFA) said in a news release last month.

And there there is Florida.  Immediately after the Seminoles launched their Hard Rock Bet sports gambling app, Florida issued a cease and desist order to PrizePicks.  For now, it's only the Seminoles who can benefit by not having Prizepicks.  Neither DraftKings or FanDuel can operate here.

- Aaron Goldstein, Gambling911.com