The announcement today of a sponsorship agreement between FanDuel and the Professional Women’s Hockey League (PWHL) raised one query: Why did it take so long? 

Authorized Sports Betting Partner 

The league's second season begins tomorrow. A total of 2.9 million viewers tuned in to see the inaugural PWHL game on January 1, 2023, on Canadian national television. Next came the “Battle on Bay Street,” where Toronto faced Montreal at Scotiabank Arena on March 3, attracting 19,285 spectators, marking the highest attendance ever for a women's hockey match. 

FanDuel has today revealed that they are now an Official Sportsbook Partner of the PWHL and the exclusive In-app Streaming Partner for the league on the FanDuel app. 

PWHL Season Begins Tomorrow 

Following its launch in January, the PWHL revealed partnerships with Airsupra, Canadian Tire, Intact Assurance, Scotiabank, Shark, Ninja, and Woody Creek Distillers as founding partners, along with Air Canada, Bread Financial, and Royale as inaugural premier partners, along with numerous companies such as Aeroplan, Barbie, Bauer, CCM, Esso, EA Sports, Gatorade, Hyundai, Molson, Goodlife, Pizza Pizza, Rogers, Tim Hortons, and others as official partners. 

A partner from the sportsbook arrived late to the event. Given all the excitement generated initially and the influx of major companies joining, it surprised industry analysts that there wasn’t a sportsbook sponsor for the PWHL.

"I’m really surprised it took as long as it did for the PWHL to find a gambling partner,” said industry consultant Aly Lalani. “I totally appreciate that the customer demographic may not be aligned with those of a traditional sportsbook, but what it lacks in immediate ROI potential it more than makes up for in credibility building value.”

Effect on women's sports wagering 

A marketing consultant informed us last spring that restricted reach was probably the main issue, suggesting that the PWHL was akin to what the consultant termed “second tier” men's sports such as curling and golf. The consultant noted that the level of play in the PWHL, however, “met the criteria.” 

“The other misconception is that women don’t bet on sports. Again, if compared to the male counterparts of most large operators’ databases, women are a much smaller percentage of total, but I would bet that in most cases it’s a growing percentage.”

We believe that is FanDuel's strategy – they probably recognize that targeting female sports bettors is a more limited niche, as hockey tends to have some of the lowest betting volumes. However, there is still potential for PR/marketing gains with the upcoming Winter Olympics and a significant marketing chance if the women achieve another gold medal. 

Six teams

“This partnership is about creating a new era of fan engagement—one that brings hockey closer to fans while helping grow the visibility of women’s professional sports,” said Dale Hooper, General Manager of FanDuel, in a statement.

The PWHL consists of six teams: Boston Fleet, Minnesota Frost, Montreal Victoire, New York Sirens, Ottawa Charge, and Toronto Sceptres. The upcoming season starts tomorrow with the Sceptres welcoming the Fleet, and the Victoire welcoming the Charge. 

“It’s fantastic to see an operator/brand like FanDuel recognize the importance of women’s professional sports and invest in supporting them,” said Amanda Brewer, an igaming consultant, and a former Country Manager Canada for Kindred. “I know many Canadians wish our men’s Olympic hockey team was as successful as our women’s team, so this feels like a levelling of the sponsorship playing field. I think it will be great if we can get to a place where it’s no longer noteworthy that big brands support women’s sports. Women play great hockey and deserve to have partners who recognize that.”

Next, Discussion on Expansion 

This year, FanDuel, for instance, is broadening its services for customers, providing greater access to the PWHL via player prop bets, novelty markets, Same Game Parlays, and additional options, says Alannah Della Vedova, Director of Content and Brand at FanDuel Canada. 

“We have seen increasingly more support each season for women’s sports and the PWHL’s record breaking accomplishments have helped grow the visibility for the sporting community,” she said. “This collaboration is about more than just hockey. We are proud to help shine a brighter spotlight on professional female athletes and foster fan engagement. FanDuel is excited to see the growth of women’s sports across the industry, including the growth of the PWHL.

FanDuel Offers New PWHL Markets

“On FanDuel Sportsbook, in Ontario, customers can place a wager on the recently announced possible PWHL expansion through novelty markets like What cities will have a PWHL expansion team in 2025-2026 season? and What countries will the two PWHL expansion teams be from?”

PWHL betting options differ among various sportsbooks – BetMGM and OLG’s Proline have Saturday lines, theScore Bet is providing Walter Cup futures, while NorthStar Bets and DraftKings have no available markets. 

“I think (sponsorship of the PWHL) was a missed opportunity for some smaller/lesser known brands to add instant credibility, especially if the focus remains on the product and not aggressively pushing betting markets to PWHL fans,” Lalani added. “It will be interesting to see what FanDuel does (if anything) from an activation perspective.”