As sports betting becomes increasingly legal across the United States, sportsbooks are finding new ways to profit from customers. DraftKings, for example, just launched a new subscription service that will give members increased odds on certain types of bets.
Sportico’s Eben Novy-Williams was the first to report on the subscription service, which has been dubbed DraftKings Sportsbook+. The product debuted earlier this week and is currently only available to select eligible customers in New York, offering subscribers who pay $20 a month “stepped up” boosts for all parlays where the individual legs are -500 or narrower, with the boosts increasing based on how many legs your bets contain.
Bet a two-leg parlay, and you’ll receive a 10 percent boost to your potential payout. Place a wager on an 11-leg parlay, and your potential profit will increase by 100 percent via the boost. Sportradar’s Robert Linnehan, meanwhile, revealed that wagers for such bets are capped at $25.
“The subscription service was designed to offer our customers an enhanced fan experience, creating more excitement and value to our extensive parlay offering,” DraftKings said in a statement, per Sportico.
It’s likely not a coincidence that DraftKings is offering a product designed to entice customers to bet on parlays.
As noted by Novy-Williams, these are the type of bets that have proven to be most profitable for online sportsbooks. During multiple earnings calls last year, DraftKings CEO and chairman Jason Robins discussed specific attempts to increase participation in parlays, including the implementation of “progressive parlays,” which launched at the end of 2023 and allow bettors to still win money even if one or more of their parlay legs miss.
Whether this will prove to be a popular product and if it will inspire similar offerings- be it at DraftKings or another sportsbook- remains to be seen. At first glance, $20 per month seems like a hefty price to pay for a product specifically geared toward bets that many customers won’t have a good shot at winning, especially with the $25 max bet limiting the potential return on bets with lower odds.
Then again, all it takes is one bet to change your life — especially when that bet has boosted odds. At least, that’s what DraftKings hopes people will tell themselves as it begins to offer its customers new opportunities to give it money in exchange for increased incentives to place longshot bets.
[Sportico]
About Ben Axelrod
Ben Axelrod is a veteran of the sports media landscape, having most recently worked for NBC's Cleveland affiliate, WKYC. Prior to his time in Cleveland, he covered Ohio State football and the Big Ten for outlets including Cox Media Group, Bleacher Report, Scout and Rivals.