It was fun while it lasted and only ever existed in one state, but it appears Underdog Sportsbook’s run is over.
Underdog has informed users in North Carolina that it will stop offering markets on the sportsbook app as of 11:59 pm on Dec. 16. An information page on its website offers more information and answers customer questions related ot the closure. The North Carolina State Lottery Commission confirmed Underdog Sportsbook’s closure on its website. The announcement comes after the regulators held a previously unscheduled meeting on Dec. 10.
Underdog will grade all outstanding wagers as winners
Customers will be able to continue to access and withdraw their funds. Pending futures wagers will be graded as winners if they are not settled as of Dec. 18. For example, if a bettor has an existing wager on the Carolina Panthers to win the Super Bowl, on Dec. 18 it will be graded as a winner even though the team has been mathematically eliminated from the playoffs.
The rapid winding down of the North Carolina sportsbook comes after Underdog abruptly u-turned on its plans to expand its sports betting offerings in Missouri.
During the 2024 Global Gaming Expo, Underdog CEO Jeremy Levine assured SBC Americas the company was committed to launching sports betting in whatever state legalized sports betting next. However, days before the planned Dec. 1 universal launch of Missouri sports betting, Underdog revealed it would not be moving forward with plans to go live in the stat.
Instead, the company has gone headfirst into prediction markets as a technology partner of Crypto.com. Unlike PrizePicks or Fanatics, which obtained necessary financial clearances to operate as introducing brokers (IB) or Futures Commission Merchant (FCM) through acquisitions and approvals to partner with prediction markets, Underdog managed to quickly launch in the space in September.
Underdog is one of many sports companies seeking FCM approval with the National Futures Association. Like many others, the company’s entity, UDM LLC, is still awaiting NFA approval.
Underdog going all in on prediction markets
Underdog is fully aligning itself with the prediction market space. The company filed an amicus brief in Kalshi’s appeal of a Maryland District Court’s decision to deny its request for a preliminary injunction to keep it online. It is also a founding member of a new trade organization, the Coalition for Prediction Markets, which consists of Underdog, Crypto.com. Coinbase, Robinhood and Kalshi.
Underdog Sports confirmed to SBC Americas that it plans to roll out prediction markets within its fantasy app in North Carolina soon. DFS operators in North Carolina do not need a license in order to offer their products in the state.
