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DraftKings shared its financial performance for Q1, revealing a 17% increase in revenue. The company is looking to expand into prediction markets, potentially including esports on DraftKings Predicts in the near future.
Following the Q1 results, DraftKings’ stock price surged by around 7%. Revenue hit $1.6 billion, resulting in a net income of $21.1 million, a sharp contrast to the net loss of $33.9 million in Q1 2025.
This marks the first time the sportsbook has seen consecutive profitable quarters, after showing positive numbers in Q4 of the previous year.
DraftKings Predicts Could Introduce Esports Betting Soon
Prediction markets are a key focus for future growth. CEO Jason Robins stated, “Our core business is solid, and profitability is on the rise. This positions us well to advance in Predictions.”
Introduced last year, DraftKings Predicts aims to tap into major markets where sports betting is not yet legal, such as Texas, California, and Florida. The company has relinquished its sports betting license in Nevada to concentrate on prediction markets.
“Through our Super App, market-making capabilities, proprietary exchange, and combos, we plan to establish a leading position in Sports Predictions by the end of the year,” added Robins.
Competitors like Kalshi and Polymarket already offer a wide array of esports markets on their platforms. As DraftKings expands its app, it is likely to compete with these companies that have been at the forefront of sports prediction markets in the US.
Contrasting Results with FanDuel
While DraftKings reported positive outcomes, its main competitor in the betting and gaming sector, FanDuel, faced a more challenging week.
The company registered a 9% decline in sports betting handle for the quarter, leading to the dismissal of CEO Amy Howe due to the lack of growth.
On the other hand, DraftKings saw a 1.5% increase in betting handle, resulting in a 24.1% growth in sportsbook revenue. FanDuel’s revenue only grew by 1%.
“The growth in the Company’s revenue for the first quarter of 2026 was primarily driven by effective customer acquisition over the past year and sustained customer engagement, as well as a higher Sportsbook net revenue margin,” stated DraftKings.
In contrast, FanDuel mentioned that it “ended 2025 with a smaller customer base than expected, which continued to impact growth in the quarter.”
Both Companies Eye Prediction Market Expansion
Both FanDuel and DraftKings expressed plans to broaden the range of available markets and states offering their prediction markets, with a focus on trading as well.
Given the continuous stream of events, a significant aspect could involve trading on esports markets, which present lucrative opportunities for betting firms to maximize their profits, according to a recent report from DATA.BET.
Peter Jackson, CEO of Flutter, FanDuel’s parent company, mentioned that they have already started trading on events on third-party prediction market platforms.
“In April, we started testing market-making services on a major third-party prediction market platform,” Jackson stated during the company’s earnings call. “Early signs have been positive, and we anticipate launching our market-making platform in the coming months.”
DraftKings also aims to leverage its market-making capabilities to leverage prediction markets for future gains.
Microbetting Potential in Prediction Markets
Earlier this week, DraftKings’ co-founder, Paul Liberman, suggested that introducing microbetting on prediction market platforms could be the next step. This move could create ample trading opportunities and attract a diverse range of users.
In esports, live in-play betting is predominant, with a report from Oddin.gg indicating that Dota 2 garners the most in-play bets, with 86% placed during live matches.
Betting on markets like the next kill or next map, known as microbets, has faced criticism. The Public Health Advocacy Institute (PHAI) recently sued FanDuel and DraftKings, alleging that these companies promote gambling addiction through microbets.
While these markets are not yet available on prediction platforms, companies like Kalshi argue that sports markets are compliant with the Commodity Exchange Act (CEA) due to their real-world economic impacts.
Although the case may be more challenging for microbets, the firms leading the way in sports prediction markets show no signs of slowing down their expansion. DraftKings is determined to take the lead in this sector in the near future.