FanDuel Casino names Lady Luck HQ as brand ambassador

Why FanDuel is turning to influencer firepower

FanDuel’s move to name Francine Maric, known as Lady Luck HQ, as an exclusive casino ambassador reflects a broader shift in how U.S. gambling operators court growth and loyalty. Maric brings a seven-figure social following built on slot play, casino tips and responsible gaming messages, giving FanDuel a direct line to a digital-first audience and more women gamblers. The timing follows parent Flutter’s full control of FanDuel in a $1.76 billion deal in July, a milestone that puts sharper focus on efficient customer acquisition, brand differentiation and safer gambling credentials in the crowded online casino and sports betting market.

Ambassador deals aim to compress the distance between brand and player. For casinos and game makers, creators who already command attention on YouTube, Instagram and TikTok can speed discovery, convert casual viewers into account holders and keep existing customers engaged through live streams, meetups and exclusive promotions. Maric joins FanDuel Casino’s roster alongside slot influencer Vegas Matt, signaling that the operator sees sustained value in creator-led marketing rather than one-off campaigns.

Rivals scale up star-led campaigns to cut through the noise

FanDuel is not alone. Competitors are layering well-known names across advertising, live events and bespoke products. BetMGM has leaned on a steady cadence of high-profile partnerships, most recently adding baseball Hall of Famer Derek Jeter as a brand ambassador. The deal includes nationwide marketing, VIP appearances and a Jeter-themed online slot, the operator’s first featuring a current or former baseball player. As detailed in BetMGM’s Jeter announcement, the company has stacked endorsements from Wayne Gretzky, Tim Howard and Barry Sanders while striking a team partnership with the WNBA’s Las Vegas Aces.

The logic is straightforward: in a market where acquisition costs are rising, star equity and nostalgia can boost ad recall and cross-sell users into casino apps. Exclusive game content tied to a celebrity can add a retention edge. Jeter’s slot concept speaks to that strategy, bundling IP with the casino experience to create reasons to log in and play beyond promotions.

UFC alliances fuel rapid scale for Aviator

Outside the operator tier, game studio Spribe has turned the UFC into a growth engine for its crash title Aviator. Through a multi-year marketing alliance that brought Aviator branding into the Octagon, Spribe has assembled an expanding roster of fighters to front campaigns targeted at fans of fast, high-variance play. In March, Spribe signed UFC heavyweight champion Tom Aspinall to promote Aviator across global initiatives, joining Alex Pereira, Johnny Walker and Merab Dvalishvili. The company said the game is live on thousands of casino sites and has tens of millions of monthly users, underscoring its reach and the scale of its marketing push. Read more in Spribe’s Tom Aspinall deal.

Spribe has kept up the pace with athlete additions across weight classes and geographies. It tapped welterweight and middleweight striker Michael “Venom” Page to lead global Aviator campaigns as part of the UFC pact, a step that came as the company credited the partnership with fueling a surge from 10 million to 60 million monthly players. Details are in Spribe’s Michael ‘Venom’ Page announcement.

The studio has also broadened beyond mixed martial arts to cricket, signing former India international Suresh Raina to bring Aviator to a massive South Asian fan base. The cross-sport approach indicates that Spribe is treating ambassadors as performance channels, using sports fandom to seed awareness in new markets and cohorts. See Spribe’s partnership with Suresh Raina for how the studio is localizing its outreach.

Local faces, local gains in Latin America

Operators expanding in Latin America are pairing national rollouts with familiar personalities to gain trust and visibility. PlayUZU, the Spanish-language brand of SkillonNet, appointed Peruvian actor and TV host Adolfo Aguilar as its Peru ambassador following the launch of PlayUZU.pe late last year. The campaign spans TV and billboards and is meant to cultivate what the company calls an emotionally connected experience across social and traditional media. The Peru Country Manager said the appointment signaled traction with local audiences and a push to deepen the brand’s South American footprint. More details are in PlayUZU’s Aguilar announcement.

The move mirrors a pattern seen in European and North American markets: secure licensing and payments rails, then deploy a recognizable national figure to accelerate brand recognition while tailoring messages to local entertainment norms. In markets where regulatory frameworks are still maturing and consumer confidence varies by operator, credible ambassadors can help shorten the path from awareness to first deposit.

Responsible gaming becomes the centerpiece

As celebrity and influencer marketing intensifies, responsible gambling messaging is becoming a required counterpart. FanDuel has emphasized that Maric will promote responsible play alongside content creation and customer events. That mirrors how operators and studios increasingly frame star partnerships as extensions of compliance and sustainability goals, not just growth levers.

This tension—between the reach of mass-market personalities and the risks of overexposure to vulnerable audiences—is defining how campaigns are designed. Expect to see more built-in limits, such as spend caps, age gating, self-exclusion prompts and educational content bundled into creator programs. Operators are also likely to lean on ambassadors with reputations for authenticity and community-building to navigate scrutiny from regulators and advocacy groups.

What to watch next

Two threads will shape the next phase. First, exclusive content tied to ambassadors is moving from novelty to expectation. BetMGM’s plan for a Jeter-themed slot signals where operators will invest to bind fandom to casino play. Second, global studios will keep regionalizing their talent rosters, as Spribe has done with UFC fighters and a cricket star, to match the demographics of growth markets.

For FanDuel, the Maric partnership underscores a push to attract and retain high-intent audiences on platforms where gambling content already thrives. The broader trend is clear: in a crowded and regulated market, ambassadors are not just spokespeople but distribution channels. The winners will combine star power with measurable acquisition, strong retention loops and visible responsible gaming guardrails.