A recent Fanduel Sportsbook outage had Maryland sports bettors up in arms after being unable to place wagers on the app for over five hours on Tuesday night.
Now, they’re requesting FanDuel make the issue right.
Get $300
FanDuel app goes offline in Maryland
As sporting events kicked off nationwide Tuesday night, FanDuel’s Maryland sports betting audience was stuck sitting on the sidelines.
Bettors attempting to access the sportsbook were greeted by an error message beginning just before 7 pm that evening. FanDuel referred to the issue as a “Delay of Game” for Marylanders. To bettors, on the other hand, this delay felt more like they had been thrown out of the game entirely.
At the end of the message, FanDuel Sportsbook directed bettors to its support channel for additional updates.
FanDuel announced the issue via its FD Customer Support page on Twitter, saying:
“Our team is aware of the current site error that is occurring for Maryland users, and we are working to resolve the issue as soon as possible. We will be sure to pass to along additional updates as they become available. Thank you for your patience!”
Maryland bettors request bonus bets from FanDuel
The tweet was met with an immediate response from Maryland sports fans. Bettors took to Twitter, suggesting FanDuel right its wrong.
Rather than simply becoming frustrated over the issue and resorting to another Maryland sportsbook to place their bets, fans instead wanted compensation for their troubles. Some proposed the sportsbook provide refunds on lost bets, while others requested FanDuel supply Marylanders with bonus bets.
One Twitter user called FanDuel’s flub an “obvious and blatant inconvenience.”
Those looking to bet on NBA basketball were especially perturbed. With just seven minutes left in the Los Angeles Lakers vs. New York Knicks game, bettors suddenly lost access to wagering on the platform.
Finally, more than five hours after the issue began, FanDuel’s customer support page announced that it had been resolved. The announcement came 18 minutes after midnight — late enough for the day’s events to be well over. The announcement cheerfully read:
“We’re happy to report that this has been resolved! Users in Maryland are now able to view active bets and place wagers. Thank you all for your patience tonight!”
As of midday Thursday morning, Maryland bettors reported receiving a $50 bonus bet as remediation for the issue.
In-person betting continues as normal at Live! Casino
Fortunately for the FanDuel retail location inside Live! Casino & Hotel, General Manager Leon Twyman, said the issue didn’t hinder in-person wagering:
“FanDuel’s online sportsbook outage on January 31st had no impact on operations of our retail FanDuel Sportsbook at Sports & Social Maryland. Though we would tend to see an increase in foot traffic at our retail outlet during an online outage, the lack of major sporting events last night made the impact of this incident minimal.”
Bettors expect bonus bets after sportsbook issues
This overwhelming response from Marylanders speaks to America’s ever-evolving sports betting culture.
Bonus bets were once considered a gracious perk after the occasional sportsbook outage. Now, a sense of entitlement seems to be forming, as bettors are coming to expect rather than celebrate the occasional bonus bet in times of issue.
PlayMaryland has reached out to FanDuel representatives, who have yet to comment further on the issue.
In a state with such a brand-new sports betting industry, market share is especially important. Even the smallest fluctuation in a brand’s image could mean millions of dollars lost for an operator.
Although pacifying Maryland bettors with bonus bets might cost FanDuel in the short term, it could ultimately help the sportsbook save face with Marylanders in the long run.
