After Years of Planning, FanDuel TV Is Finally Here To Serve the Sports-Betting Fan The 24/7 linear/digital network is the first dedicated to sports-wagering content By Jason Dachman, Chief Editor Thursday, November 17, 2022 - 11:44 am
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TVG Network's relaunch as FanDuel TV in September was the culmination of years of planning and work that predated the pandemic. As the first 24/7 linear/digital network dedicated entirely to sports-wagering content, FanDuel TV and FanDuel extend beyond the horseracing-focused programming of TVG Network with a swath of live studio shows and multi-sport programming.
FanDuel TV officially launched in September in what was previously TVG Network studios. (Photo: Eric Girard LinkedIn)
To make this happen, FanDuel TV Executive Producer/SVP, TV, Kevin Grigsby and his team rebuilt the network's entire graphics package and overall on-air look, expanded the technical infrastructure at its existing Los Angeles studios, and expanded its distribution model beyond linear and into the OTT-verse with FanDuel .
We launched FanDuel TV on a very short timeline in a matter of weeks, but we've been building up to this and planning for it for years, says Grigsby. Whether it was expanding the backend of our [L.A. broadcast facility], diversifying our offering onto non-linear platforms, or looking at new forms of programming, this has been on our radar since 2018.
Years in the Making: How FanDuel TV Came to Life Prior to the launch, FanDuel and TVG, both owned by Flutter Entertainment, had collaborated on betting programming with shows like More Ways To Win and The Barstool Sports Advisors. However, the network's relaunch as FanDuel TV took these efforts to the next level with not only a full on-air rebrand but a dramatically expanded lineup of betting programming.
We presented this idea [of FanDuel TV] in January 2020 and were ready to move forward, says Grigsby, but, a few weeks later, the world turned sideways [because of the pandemic]. With all sports canceled, horseracing was the only thing going, and TVG was staying on the air to televise horseracing events. It just wasn't the right time to consider a brand pivot. Then, after a year and a half of getting through the pandemic, we dusted off the strategy we had pitched, and here we are today with FanDuel TV living and breathing.
Up & Adams, starring former NFL Network star Kay Adams, headlines FanDuel TV's new slate of live studio programming.
After the pandemic-fueled delay and months of long days and hard work, FanDuel TV has a full slate of daily programming on-air. Headlining the lineup is Up & Adams, starring former host of NFL Network's Good Morning Football Kay Adams, and the NBA-focused Run It Back, hosted by Michelle Beadle, Chandler Parsons, and Shams Charania. Horseracing coverage and More Ways To Win With Lisa Kerney remain key cogs in the programming lineup, and content from The Ringer and Pat McAfee also is prominently featured.
In addition to the new talent in front of the camera, Fan Duel TV has brought on Jason Cahill (formerly of Fox Sports) and Richard Isakow (formerly of NFL Network) to oversee its sports programming and content department (as senior producer and producer, respectively), along with several other veterans of live-sports-studio programming.
Outside of in-studio programming, FanDuel TV and FanDuel plan to deliver more than 3,000 hours of live sports, including International Basketball League action (as part of a recent deal with Sportradar), Australia's National Basketball League (NBL), the Chinese Basketball League, and French and German pro leagues. Its NBL coverage launch last month, marking a major milestone in new programming for the TV network and OTT distribution, according to FanDuel TV and FanDuel Senior Manager Eric Girard.
A Whole New Look: Design of FanDuel TV Studio Sets, Graphics Packages FanDuel TV enlisted Devlin Design Group to help design and build an entirely new look for its studio shows. Prior to the network's launch, Devlin worked on FanDuel TV's large presence on Radio Row at Super Bowl LVI in L.A., and the partnership proved to be a winner. When FanDuel TV was looking to create the sets for its first new show, Up & Adams, Devlin was brought in.
Devlin Design Group helped Fan Duel TV create the new Up & Adams studio in L.A.
First and foremost, says Grigsby, our set design was very horseracing-centric. For 23 years, we were the horseracing network, and now we're FanDuel TV. Even though we still have a lot of horseracing, we want to be able to pivot to whatever [sport] we might be talking about at any given moment. When you tune in to our studio programming, we don't want you to say, Well, that's the horseracing network talking about football.' And Devlin has been a phenomenal partner in creating that [multi-sport] feel in the studio.
A much more significant in-studio redesign - Grigsby estimates about 75% of the studio footprint - will take place following Super Bowl LVII in February and will include both aesthetic and equipment enhancements.
In addition to the current Up & Adams studio, FanDuel TV plans a studio renovation for the rest of the space following Super Bowl LVII next year.
In terms of the new FanDuel TV graphics package, Grigsby brought in Senior Art Director Belca Bedoya-Pedyna from ESPN to lead the design effort along with brand consultant Interbrand. On the operational side, FanDuel TV tapped Bannister Lake to develop a broadcast-image-management system with integrated data.
Belca came in and worked with our FanDuel-brand team and Interbrand to upgrade the entire FanDuel brand, which included our television graphics, says Grigsby. We partnered with a company called Banister Lake to develop FanDuel's first bro
