Fanatics Moves Beyond the US With Landmark UAE Gaming Partnership
The company will act as the platform provider for the UAE Lottery and the country’s first fully licensed iGaming operator
Fanatics has taken its first step into international gaming outside the United States through a new strategic arrangement in the United Arab Emirates, marking both its debut in a regulated overseas market and its first move into lottery operations globally.
The company will act as the platform provider for the UAE Lottery and the country’s first fully licensed iGaming operator, following a joint venture with Momentum Group. The deal brings Fanatics’ sportsbook and casino technology into Momentum’s regulated UAE ecosystem, which already spans lottery, online casino, sportsbook, and digital content services.
Under the agreement, Fanatics will support the existing licensed operations housed within the joint venture structure, strengthening Momentum’s regulated gaming offering in the region and aiming to broaden access to compliant, high-quality gaming products in the UAE.
Momentum Group, headquartered in Abu Dhabi, operates through subsidiaries including The Game LLC and Coin Technology Projects LLC, which respectively run the UAE Lottery and Play 971 platform. The Game LLC secured the lottery licence in July 2024 from the UAE’s General Commercial Gaming Regulatory Authority (GCGRA), during its early framework development phase.
Shortly after regulatory changes and leadership transitions within the GCGRA, Play 971 launched as the UAE’s first fully licensed iGaming platform, later expanding into sports betting. At present, it remains one of only a small number of approved commercial gaming operations in the country, alongside the upcoming Wynn Al Marjan Island development, due to open in 2027.
The shift to Fanatics represents a notable change in strategy for The Game LLC, which initially built its lottery system using proprietary technology and external content partners such as EQL Games. The new approach instead places Fanatics at the centre of the platform’s technology stack, leveraging its established expertise in US sports betting and casino operations.
Fanatics itself has no previous footprint in lottery products or regulated markets outside the US, making this agreement a significant expansion of scope. However, the company confirmed that while it will power the platform, Fanatics branding will not be visible to end users of the UAE services.
A spokesperson for the GCGRA has approved the change in control of the licensed entities, enabling the joint venture structure to proceed under the updated arrangement.
Commenting on the deal, Fanatics Gaming President Conor Grant said:
“The UAE is establishing one of the most thoughtfully regulated commercial gaming markets in the world, and Momentum has demonstrated what a responsible, credible operation within it looks like. We are entering this market for the long term, committed to building something genuinely category-defining together.”
Momentum Group Chief Operating Officer Scott Burton also highlighted the strategic alignment between the two companies:
“Combining Momentum’s regional experience with Fanatics’ global product capability creates a partnership well placed to grow alongside this market for the long term,” he added.
The partnership signals a broader ambition from Fanatics to expand its B2B gaming footprint internationally, with the UAE now acting as its first testbed beyond North America and its first step into the lottery vertical.
