Paddy Power unwilling to bet big on US growth plan

Paddy Power-Betfair has poured cold water on suggestions the US betting market could substantially open up in the wake of Pennsylvania liberalising its gaming laws.

Earlier this week, the US state passed laws legalising certain betting activity such as online poker, casino games and betting on fantasy sports leagues. Paddy Power-Betfair has a strong presence in the US — via its TVG online horse racing outlet, its New Jersey-based online casino offering and Draft, a New York-based outlet focused on fantasy sports league betting, which it acquired earlier this year — and has welcomed the move in Pennsylvania.

However, outgoing chief executive Breon Corcoran told analysts on the company’s third quarter earnings call that it is unlikely to usher in a wholesale loosening of US betting laws.