Genius Sports Data Pricing Dispute Stalls Negotiations as Public Health Advocates Sue League Over In-Game Betting
2021 marked the first time the NFL anointed official sports betting partners. The three partnerships, first signed in April of that year, were each five-year agreements worth collectively close to $1 billion. Now, none of Fanduel, Draftkings, and Caesars renewed before the March 31 deadline, according to an SBJ report that was confirmed by NBC Sports’ Pro Football Talk.
Negotiations between the NFL and its two largest partners, Fanduel and Draftkings, stalled over a price increase for official streaming data distributed through Genius Sports, the league’s exclusive real-time data provider. Caesars was not expected to renew its deal regardless of the data pricing dispute.
Genius Sports, which powers over 98% of legalized U.S. sports betting on NFL games according to the league’s own website, extended its exclusive data deal with the league through the 2030 season in June 2025. The NFL was Genius Sports’ largest shareholder from 2021 to 2025, receiving 22.5 million shares across the original deal and the subsequent extension. To date, it remains the company’s second-largest shareholder, with CEO Mark Locke overtaking the league following a private equity selloff in mid-2024.
The league told SBJ it remains open to “various league partnership structures,” a signal that could include an exclusive arrangement with a single operator rather than the three-partner model used since 2021. With Fanduel and Draftkings controlling roughly two-thirds of the U.S. sportsbook market, alternatives capable of replacing their spending are limited.
The absence of a replacement deal comes against a backdrop of growing legal scrutiny over the league’s role in the national sports betting ecosystem. On March 24, the Public Health Advocacy Institute (PHAI) at Northeastern University filed a product liability lawsuit in Philadelphia naming the NFL itself as a defendant alongside Draftkings, Fanduel, and Genius Sports. The complaint notably does not name Caesars, the third expired partner, as a defendant.
The complaint alleges the companies developed and distributed online sports betting platforms engineered to be addictive, specifically targeting microbetting. These are rapid in-game wagers on individual plays like whether the next play will be a pass or a run, if a third-down conversion attempt will succeed, or the outcome of the next drive – wagers that settle within seconds. The product is powered by the same Genius Sports data pipeline at the center of the partnership pricing dispute.
The suit was brought on behalf of two Pennsylvania residents who claim they developed severe gambling addictions, and draws explicit parallels to tobacco industry litigation. It alleges Draftkings and Fanduel used AI-driven push notifications and personal VIP hosts to escalate betting behavior, even after one plaintiff indicated he wanted to stop. “Following in the footsteps of the tobacco industry, the online sports gambling industry has developed a highly addictive, difficult-to-resist product that bombards consumers with dozens of betting opportunities every minute of the day,” PHAI Litigation Director Andrew Rainer said in a statement.
According to the Boston Globe, Draftkings, Fanduel and the NFL did not respond to requests for comment about the case. A Genius Sports spokesman also declined to address the litigation to the outlet. U.S. sports betting generated a record $16.96 billion in revenue in 2025 on $166.94 billion in total wagers, according to the American Gaming Association. The NFL remains the single most-wagered sport in the country.
FAQ 🔎
- Why did the NFL’s sportsbook deals expire? Negotiations with Fanduel and Draftkings stalled over a price increase for official game data distributed through Genius Sports, while Caesars was not expected to renew regardless.
- How much were the NFL’s sportsbook partnerships worth? The three five-year deals with Fanduel, Draftkings, and Caesars, first signed in April 2021, were worth collectively close to $1 billion.
- Who is suing the NFL over sports betting? The Public Health Advocacy Institute at Northeastern University filed a product liability lawsuit in Philadelphia, naming the NFL, Draftkings, Fanduel, and Genius Sports as defendants over allegedly addictive microbetting products.
- How much money was wagered on U.S. sports betting in 2025? Americans legally wagered $166.94 billion on sports in 2025, generating a record $16.96 billion in revenue, according to the American Gaming Association.
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