Underdog extends St. Louis Blues partnership ahead of Missouri sports betting launch

Charlotte Capewell

15 October 2025 at 7:12am UTC-4

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Daily fantasy sports operator Underdog has extended its multi-year partnership with Missouri NHL team St. Louis Blues, ahead of the state’s December 1 sports betting launch.

Having partnered earlier this year to offer a fantasy sports sign-up bonus for fans at Enterprise Center in Missouri, the new multi-year marketing partnership aims to drive fan engagement at both home and away games for Blues supporters.

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Underdog offers fantasy sports across the US but is expanding into the sports betting market, with licensed books in North Carolina and a pending application in Missouri after the fantasy sports operator partnered with the Kansas City Royals for a license.

The partnership will see Underdog gain access to the Blues’ marketing materials, which will allow them to utilize video and broadcast at home and away games, as well as in-person activations.

Joshua Anderson, Director of Strategy at Underdog, said, “Being on the ground at Enterprise Center this season, we’re meeting fans on the cusp of a new era in the overall sports experience, and doing so in a way that’s authentic to the Blues and everything they represent.”

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The Blues’ Chief Revenue and Marketing Officer, Steve Chapman, also spoke about his excitement regarding the partnership. “We are proud to welcome Underdog as our first partner in this new category with a multiyear commitment to engage our fans with a significant presence both in-arena and on our broadcasts,” he said.

Charlotte Capewell brings her passion for storytelling and expertise in writing, researching, and the gambling industry to every article she writes. Her specialties include the US gambling industry, regulator legislation, igaming, and more.

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The Backstory

Setting the stage for a Dec. 1 debut

Missouri’s sports betting market is moving toward a Dec. 1, 2025 launch after a compressed rulemaking and licensing sprint that began in earnest this summer. The Missouri Gaming Commission confirmed the timetable when it opened applications for both tethered and untethered sportsbook licenses and set a Sept. 12 deadline to finalize bids. Chairwoman Jan Zimmerman framed the timeline as deliberate and compliance-heavy to ensure qualified entrants and a stable rollout. The commission has emphasized that the process will not be accelerated, even as operators and teams ramp up marketing and access deals ahead of the start date. That clarity followed voter approval last year and helped crystallize a market structure where casinos and professional franchises become critical conduits for access.

The roadmap has been public for months. Early signals came as regulators began taking submissions for the two coveted standalone online licenses and a larger pool of team or casino-affiliated permits. By anchoring the calendar to the first week of December, the state positioned itself to capture peak football season handle while also giving operators a final quarter to harden systems and validate compliance. That approach aims to avoid missteps experienced elsewhere during fast-tracked launches and to keep tax receipts in state that might otherwise flow to border markets.

In laying out her reasoning, Zimmerman said the scrutiny is by design to “make sure that the people who get a license in the state of Missouri are people who should get a license,” underscoring the operational checks that have defined the run-up to live betting. The stepwise approach also aligns with the Legislature’s mandate that wagering be up and running by Dec. 1, 2025, providing a backstop that has shaped operator behavior and dealmaking cadence.

More details on the timing and licensing plan are outlined in the commission’s announcement of the Dec. 1 launch.

The licensing scramble and early winners

Missouri’s framework splits licenses between untethered entrants and those tied to casinos or teams. That configuration triggered an early scramble. DraftKings and Underdog were the first to apply for online licenses, targeting the two standalone slots that allow operators to enter without a local partner. The field was expected to widen to include FanDuel, Fanatics, Caesars, Penn and others, but the early move gave DraftKings and Underdog a visibility edge during the vetting phase.

By late summer the picture sharpened. Regulators selected DraftKings and Circa Sports for the untethered licenses, cementing two national brands as direct competitors and forcing other operators to lock in tethered access. That outcome pushed would-be standalone players to accelerate talks with Missouri’s 13 casinos and six pro teams, a dynamic that has defined deal flow since August.

Fanatics moved quickly. It struck a multi-year licensing partnership with Boyd Gaming, which operates two Ameristar casinos in the state, and plans to rebrand Boyd’s sportsbooks to Fanatics. The pivot marked a departure from Boyd’s typical alignment with FanDuel and underscored how Missouri’s structure can reorder national partnerships. Meanwhile, several properties and teams prioritized continuity: BetMGM aligned with Century Casinos and Bet365 paired with the St. Louis Cardinals, creating a competitive tapestry of national and regional brands across the state.

Teams emerge as market gatekeepers

Missouri’s approach elevates sports franchises as distribution hubs, giving them leverage over mobile access and in-venue activations. The Kansas City Royals turned that into a strategic alliance, granting Underdog market access via a multi-year partnership while Underdog’s application is under review. The deal builds on fan programs such as Bark at the Park and positions the team as a key onramp for promotions, stadium integrations and localized product features once the market opens.

St. Louis saw similar jockeying. MLS club St. Louis City SC chose FanDuel for a marketing tie-up this summer, while MLB’s Cardinals aligned with Bet365. Casino partners followed suit, with Century Casinos selecting BetMGM to steer online and on-property wagering. These partnerships are more than logo swaps. They grant marketing access, data rights and broadcast presence crucial to brand discovery in a post-launch blitz.

Team-led access reflects a wider policy goal. State leaders have argued that regulated operators tied to local institutions can stem the leakage of betting dollars to Kansas and Illinois. The Missouri council has also suggested that franchise involvement could bolster long-term stadium investments and keep marquee teams in state, an economic underpinning to the regulatory design.

Underdog’s pivot from fantasy to full-stack betting

Underdog’s trajectory illustrates how daily fantasy operators are leveraging brand equity into regulated betting. The company already runs licensed sportsbooks in North Carolina and holds fantasy licenses in multiple states. In Missouri it has stacked partnerships on both sides of the state line, pairing the Royals access deal with a multi-year extension with the St. Louis Blues that expands marketing rights across home and away broadcasts and in-arena activations. The Blues arrangement gives Underdog visibility during the NHL season and creates a cross-sport funnel ahead of launch.

If approved, Underdog’s Missouri entry would round out a two-pronged strategy: a team access agreement for licensing and a league-stage marketing footprint to accelerate customer acquisition. The company was among the first to file for an online license and later pivoted to tethered access after the state limited untethered slots. The moves signal that midtier brands will rely on targeted partnerships and differentiated product features rather than mass national spend to carve out share.

Executives at Underdog have framed the Missouri opportunity as a chance to “drive innovation in sports gaming” while deepening ties with fans. The emphasis on in-arena presence and broadcast integration points to a playbook built on digital funnels that start at the venue level and convert to mobile app users through persistent engagement.

Consumer risks and the compliance backdrop

Missouri’s rollout coincides with a wave of consumer protection messaging. The Better Business Bureau warned of a rise in gambling-linked scams and urged bettors to verify operator licensing, scrutinize terms and watch for red flags such as frozen accounts or misleading promotions. Its notice cited a doubling in complaint volume since 2023, signaling the risk that gray-market sites and imposter apps will try to piggyback on the state’s launch window. The BBB alert dovetails with the commission’s methodical vetting and with operators’ own KYC and geolocation ramp-ups ahead of go-live.

The stakes are material. Lawmakers expect tax receipts from legal betting to bolster state revenues and reduce outflows to neighboring markets. Regulators, for their part, are betting that a strict licensing filter and tighter partnerships with known entities—teams and casinos—will channel players into the regulated ecosystem. That calculus depends on clear messaging at launch, rapid dispute resolution and early enforcement against unlicensed operators.

As Dec. 1 approaches, Missouri’s market is taking final shape. DraftKings and Circa will test standalone models in a team- and casino-heavy field. Fanatics will lean on Boyd’s footprint. BetMGM and Bet365 will ride local partnerships. And Underdog will try to convert its fantasy base and team integrations into sportsbook customers. The next month will be about final approvals, app store submissions and operational dress rehearsals. The first quarter after launch will determine whether the state’s deliberate approach delivers the stability and consumer protection it promised—or whether the pressures of a crowded field force a new round of consolidation and recalibration.