FanDuel Falls Behind DraftKings in West Virginia's Sports Betting Market
FanDuel has lost the sports betting handle lead it long held in West Virginia, with DraftKings now out-handling it over the past full year, according to state lottery data reported this week. The shift traces back to a license move FanDuel made over a year ago, and the numbers show its position eroding steadily since.
What the data shows
Comparing the twelve months from October 2025 through September 2026 against the same period a year earlier, FanDuel's West Virginia handle fell from roughly $172.4 million to about $152 million, a decline of nearly 12%. DraftKings' handle also dipped over the same span, from about $168.5 million to roughly $159.4 million, but by a smaller margin — enough for DraftKings to move ahead of FanDuel in total wagers for the full year. DraftKings' revenue over that span rose to about $19.5 million, while FanDuel's revenue slipped slightly to around $21 million. FanDuel still kept more revenue overall thanks to a higher hold percentage, but its revenue lead over DraftKings has narrowed sharply.
Before the shift, FanDuel had out-handled DraftKings in eight of the eleven months tracked under its prior licensing arrangement. Since moving its license, it has done so in only four of the following twelve months. September 2026 was an exception: FanDuel posted $16.65 million for the month, narrowly ahead of DraftKings' $16.09 million and its first monthly win over DraftKings since April.
Why it happened
The change traces back to a partnership FanDuel struck with Delaware North, announced in September 2025, moving its West Virginia online sportsbook license from The Greenbrier to Mardi Gras Casino & Resort. October 2025 was the first full month under the new license. Bettors use the same FanDuel app regardless of which casino holds the underlying license, so the switch changed little from a customer's perspective — but the handle and revenue data show FanDuel's numbers declining steadily in the year since the move, without a clearly identified cause tied to the license change itself.
Elsewhere in the state's market, Charles Town — now home to DraftKings, Fanatics, and theScore Bet — led all West Virginia licenses with $23.2 million in September handle. Mardi Gras, FanDuel's new home, posted $17 million for the month, the state's second-busiest license. BetMGM, the only sportsbook tied to The Greenbrier, handled just $3.1 million in September, down nearly 39% from a year earlier.
Why it matters to bettors
None of this changes the odds or promotions available on either app — handle and revenue figures describe market share, not value to a bettor. But the shuffling of licenses between casino partners is a reminder that which brick-and-mortar property sits behind an app's license can change without the app itself changing, and that state-published handle data is one of the few hard numbers available for comparing how sportsbooks are actually performing in a given market. West Virginia's lottery publishes this sports wagering data monthly, making it one of the more transparent states for this kind of market tracking.