DraftKings was assured of a prominent role in New York State horse racing, thanks to a newly announced sponsorship. The Boston-based sportsbook giant has inked a pact with the New York Racing Association (NYRA).
Under the terms of the new deal, DraftKings will be an official betting partner of both Saratoga Race Course and the Belmont Stakes Racing Festival. It will also sponsor DraftKings Travers, a five-race event that is part of Saratoga’s August 24 day of races and will be broadcast by the Fox family of networks.
The Saratoga season runs from July 11 through September 2. This is DraftKings’s second season of affiliation with the track. DraftKings signage will be prominently displayed at Saratoga starting in June.
DraftKings general manager of horse racing, Christopher Cipolla, said, “Having our branding present throughout the summer at one of the most beautiful and well-attended race tracks in all the world and being named the presenting sponsor of this year’s Travers and Acorn further cement our commitment to horse racing.”
The “Acorn” to which Cipolla referred is a three-race event that will be held on June 7. It will comprise the second day of the Belmont Stakes Racing Festival. DraftKings will be the presenting sponsor of the $500,000 purse.
The festival will also offer prominent placement to DraftKings’s horse-racing application, DK Horse. The latter is described by the company as “a standalone app currently available in 20 states [that] allows eligible customers access to pari-mutuel wagering on domestic and international racing.”
DraftKings is a premier brand within the rapidly growing sports wagering marketplace, and this arrangement will help to introduce world-class racing to a wider audience of fans and bettors,” enthused NYRA Chief Revenue Officer Tony Allevato.
