Flutter sets up PokerStars-FanDuel poker merger

• New subdomains on FanDuel.com show active testing of a combined PokerStars-FanDuel poker client in New Jersey, Michigan, and Pennsylvania, according to industry reports.
• A senior PokerStars product director has moved to FanDuel in what appears to be a poker-focused role, alongside new poker-related job postings at FanDuel.
• Flutter CEO Peter Jackson has previously stated the company plans to integrate PokerStars’ product capability into FanDuel, lending strategic weight to the mounting operational signals.

Flutter Entertainment is showing clear signs that a long-anticipated integration of PokerStars and FanDuel in the US market is moving from speculation to reality.

According to reporting by Poker Industry PRO, three specific developments now point toward an imminent combined offering:

• new FanDuel.com subdomains referencing PokerStars-branded poker clients in New Jersey, Michigan, and Pennsylvania;
• fresh job postings for poker-focused roles at FanDuel;
• and a long-time PokerStars product director who has transferred to FanDuel in what appears to be a poker-facing position.

No formal announcement has been made by Flutter or FanDuel. The company has not confirmed a timeline for any product launch.

Evidence points to combined branding

The subdomains discovered on FanDuel.com are particularly telling.

They suggest the company is actively testing a poker client under a joint PokerStars-FanDuel identity, rather than building a standalone FanDuel product from scratch. That finding aligns with Flutter CEO Peter Jackson’s own prior remarks.

During a previous earnings communication, Jackson stated that “we do plan to integrate [PokerStars’] product capability into FanDuel,” signaling the group’s strategic intent well before the current wave of operational evidence surfaced.

The exact structure of any final product remains open. Options could include a full rebrand of PokerStars under the FanDuel name, a co-branded “FanDuel Powered by PokerStars” model, or a shared network where both brands operate as skins on a common platform.

Any of those configurations would place poker alongside FanDuel’s existing sportsbook and casino products, matching the all-in-one model already used by major US competitors including DraftKings and BetMGM.

PokerStars’ Pennsylvania delay points to transition planning

One of the clearest indirect signals of a pending transition is PokerStars’ decision not to join Pennsylvania’s shared liquidity pool following the state’s entry into the Multi-State Internet Gaming Agreement (MSIGA).

Pennsylvania became the sixth and largest member of MSIGA in April 2025. Competitors including BetMGM and WSOP moved quickly to connect Pennsylvania players with their existing multi-state networks. PokerStars stayed out, citing “global operational priorities.”

Industry observers, including Pokerfuse, have suggested the most plausible explanation is that PokerStars is holding off on a PA liquidity expansion because any such expansion would need to be redone once the brand moves to FanDuel’s licensing structure.

Proceeding under the PokerStars license only to re-license and re-integrate a few months later would create unnecessary duplication.

PokerStars also canceled its US Championship of Online Poker (COOP) series for fall 2025, promising it would return “bigger and better than ever” in 2026. That framing, combined with the accumulated infrastructure signals, suggests a carefully managed transition period rather than a product in decline.

Day-one liquidity and expanded state access

Should the integration proceed, the immediate priority for the merged product is expected to be the formation of a three-state network combining Michigan, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania. That pool would be one of the largest in US regulated online poker, offering consistently fuller tables, larger tournament guarantees, and a more competitive product for end users.

Beyond those three states, a move to FanDuel’s licensing infrastructure could unlock access to additional regulated online poker markets.

FanDuel currently holds licenses in West Virginia, where online poker is legal but only BetRivers Poker currently operates, and potentially Nevada, a market PokerStars has historically been unable to enter. Access to Nevada would carry particular value for shared liquidity purposes, given that it is part of the existing multi-state poker compact.

Strategic context and cross-selling potential

The business case for integration is well established within Flutter. FanDuel leads the US market in online sports betting and is among the top performers in iGaming.

Moving poker under its umbrella would expose the PokerStars product to millions of existing FanDuel users who have never had a poker option within the same platform. That cross-sell opportunity, combined with a unified digital wallet and rewards structure, would represent a meaningful advantage over building user adoption from zero.

FanDuel’s parent has also expanded into adjacent territory, with the recent launch of FanDuel Predicts, a prediction market product now live in all 50 states. That move demonstrates Flutter’s appetite for adding product verticals to the FanDuel brand beyond its traditional sports and casino focus.

For the broader US online poker market, a fully resourced FanDuel-branded poker product would represent the most significant competitive development in years.