How FanDuel is bringing betting into the social conversation
FanDuel has become the first official and exclusive sportsbook and prediction market partner of Real App, a social sports platform with more than 1.5m monthly active users that combines live sports data with community engagement.
Since the start of the 2026 NFL season, FanDuel odds, markets and data visualisations have been integrated into Real’s live game feeds, player performance screens and box scores. The partnership places betting-related context alongside the real-time statistics and conversations that fans are already engaging with throughout games.
At one level, this is a distribution partnership. More significantly, it reflects a broader shift in where sports fandom happens and how data, community and betting are increasingly converging around the fan experience.
Sports fandom is becoming a multi-platform experience
For decades, the live broadcast sat at the center of the sports fan experience. Today, fandom increasingly extends across social platforms, creator content, group chats and live data experiences.
The numbers are striking. Recent research from Hub Entertainment found that 45% of sports fans under 35 get most or all of their non-live sports content from social media, more than four times the rate among fans aged 55 and older. Among sports fans aged 13 to 34 who use social media during live games, 62% say what they are doing relates directly to the game they are watching
Deloitte’s 2026 Digital Media Trends report points in the same direction. More than half of fans say social platforms are now their primary way of discovering new content, rising to 73% among Gen Z. For younger audiences, the second screen is no longer a distraction from the game. It is increasingly part of the experience itself.
Why Real matters
The concept behind Real began with a 4 am text and a simple idea. It was February 2020, and Louis Antonelli messaged his younger brother, John, early in the morning, arguing the need for a platform that would turn real-time sports data into something fans could follow, discuss and react to together. They discussed a fragmented experience – one app for scores, another for highlights, another for conversation – where there was an opportunity to integrate.
Fast forward, and the Real platform now combines live statistics, play-by-play updates, player tracking, notifications and community discussion into a single experience. Every play, performance and box score can become something fans react to, debate and discuss together.
This approach has helped the platform build a highly engaged audience. Real says more than 70% of monthly users return on major game days, such as NFL Sundays, concurrent users have exceeded 250,000 during close games, and nearly 30% actively contribute comments and reactions. For FanDuel, this creates an opportunity to reach sports fans at moments when they are already deeply engaged with the action.
Built around behaviour
Perhaps the most interesting aspect of the partnership is that sports betting was already part of the conversation. According to Real's research, which has been published by FanDuel, around 75% of their users who commented on player performances had previously discussed sports betting. Users have also actively requested live odds and betting-related information within the platform. Rather than introducing an entirely new behavior, the partnership responds to one that already existed.
From a consumer perspective, that matters. Fans were already discussing bets and looking for betting context. The integration simply brings that information closer to the moments where those conversations are already happening.
The rise of platforms like Real highlights another broader trend in sports consumption – data is increasingly becoming content in its own right. Fans do not just consume sports through broadcasts. They follow player performance metrics, live statistics, highlights, commentary and social reactions alongside the action.
Research from WSC Sports found that 62% of sports fans have discovered a new team, player or league through short-form video content, underlining how sports discovery is increasingly happening beyond traditional channels. Odds can play a similar role. They provide another layer of context around what is happening during a game and can spark discussion, debate and interaction among fans following the action in real time.
Three themes stand out
Sports fandom increasingly happens across live data, social platforms and communities at the same time. With 45% of under-35 sports fans getting most or all of their non-live sports content from social media, being part of the fan experience increasingly means showing up beyond traditional channels.
Fans no longer just watch games. They track players, follow live statistics, react to performances and debate what happens next. Real has built its experience around turning that data into something social. Betting markets and odds can add another layer of context to the same conversation.
Around 75% of Real users commenting on player performances had already discussed sports betting, while users were actively asking for odds and betting information. The partnership works because it responds to an existing behavior rather than trying to create a new one, bringing relevant betting context into the experience while retaining appropriate eligibility and responsible gaming safeguards.
A connected experience
The partnership reflects a broader trend across sports, media and technology. As fan journeys become more fragmented, companies are increasingly looking for ways to connect live content, engaged communities, and real-time information into a more seamless experience.
For FanDuel, the opportunity is compelling. Rather than asking fans to leave on platform and open another, this integration helps bring betting-related context into an environment they already use. This approach aligns with a wider shift in sports consumption, whereby according to Hub data, 41% of sports fans say they are getting more sports content through social media compared to a year ago. As sports fandom continues to evolve, the most successful experiences may be those that fit naturally into the ways fans already follow and engage with the games they love.
The significance of the partnership is not just reaching a new audience; it is participating in a broader evolution of sports fandom, one where the lines between media, data, community and betting are becoming increasingly blurred.
