"StarsDraft" Announced as Amaya's Entry into DFS Market

Move over FanDuel, DraftKings and Yahoo! PokerStars' parent company, Amaya, has announced the purchase of the Texas-based Daily Fantasy Sports (DFS) site Victiv and plans to rebrand the offering as "StarsDraft" and enter the burgeoning DFS market.

The launch date is not yet set in stone, as a press release announcing the acquisition stated only that StarsDraft.com will operate "in select U.S. markets" and eventually be available to gamblers "through the PokerStars platform." The site will be managed by those who currently run Victiv.com, which has been up and running for less than a year.

“StarsDraft will combine Victiv’s innovative platform and experienced DFS team with Amaya’s expansive consumer base and operational excellence as the world’s preeminent online gaming brand,” said Victiv CEO Matthew Primeaux. “We intend to capitalize on what we believe is strong crossover between online poker players and daily fantasy sports."

DFS has enjoyed growing popularity, allowing players to select rosters of their own choosing in a multitude of sports while typically staying under a salary cap. Daily contests are based on the performances of the sports stars chosen by each DFS player.

A number of professional poker players who tired of the grind and variance associated with being successful at poker have instead turned their attention to DFS wagering. Of course, many others compete in both arenas.

Victiv is seen as no. 3 in the DFS market behind FanDuel and DraftKings, the latter two spending massive amounts on marketing in an effort to capture market share. Yahoo launched its DFS platform last month after years of offering free fantasy sports contests that typically ran for the entire season.

At an earnings call earlier today, Amaya CEO David Baazov indicated that StarsDraft will not join DraftKings and FanDuel in its apparent marketing spend contest, but will instead concentrate on promoting its DFS offering to current PokerStars customers.