Daily fantasy sports company DraftKings is returning to the live tournament poker scene as the Boston-based DFS outfit and the World Poker Tour reached an agreement that will see DraftKings serve as the sponsor for the fast-approaching Season XVI WPT European Championship at Spielbank Casino in Berlin, Germany from January 10-15, 2018.
The World Poker Tour made the announcement of the new partnership, stating that it is a ‘great pleasure’ to welcome DraftKings as a sponsor. This is not the first time that DraftKings has worked with the World Poker Tour. In 2013, the DFS brand was the exclusive DFS partner of the WPT during the 12th season into the 13th season.
Draftkings became an official sponsor of the World Series of Poker in 2014, a collaboration that continued through the latter part of 2015 when the business relationship came to an end when in October 2015, the Nevada Gaming Control Board found that daily fantasy sports constitutes gambling. The move by Nevada resulted in operators having to exit the state hastily when it was announced that DFS operators would have to obtain gaming licenses.
As part of the new partnership deal, DraftKings is offering daily fantasy qualifying contests where winners have the ability to earn an entry into the WPT European Championship Main Event. The buy-in to this poker event is €3,300 which will be covered by the DFS brand as well as travel and accommodation expenses to those who win the contests.
Once the WPT event takes place in January, DraftKings will be on hand offering additional promotions with prizes on offer for those in attendance.