Boxing introduced another historic partnership Thursday.
FanDuel Sportsbook New York announced a marketing deal with Amanda Serrano, a seven-division boxing champion.
The deal designates FanDuel as the exclusive NY sportsbook partner of Serrano (42 wins, 1 loss, 1 draw) ahead of her major 10-round title fight against Ireland’s Katie Taylor (20-0-0) at Madison Square Garden on Saturday, April 30 (DAZN, 10 p.m.).
The match will be the first time a women’s bout ever has headlined a card at Madison Square Garden, the iconic fight venue that has staged countless high-profile contests for the last 140 years.
Madison Square Garden also has landed its share of deals recently, and is on record as seeing value in New York sports betting.
The latest odds on FanDuel have Serrano as a -130 favorite over the 35-year-old Taylor (+102) for Taylor’s World Boxing Council, World Boxing Association, International Boxing Federation and World Boxing Organization Female Lightweight titles.
FanDuel also will have betting options such as moneyline 3-way, round betting, method of victory, alternative group round betting and how long the fight will last.
What the Deal Means
The top-ranked sports betting platform in the Empire State will have access to Serrano's name and likeness and Serrano, in turn, will create unique content on her social platforms, including the FanDuel logo on her trunks during the fight.
FanDuel also will offer custom promotions on the FanDuel Sportsbook ahead of Serrano’s title fight next week.
“As the first female professional boxer to headline the iconic Madison Square Garden, I recognize the responsibility I have to uplift women in sports,” Serrano said in a news release. “I am honored to be the first boxer to partner with FanDuel, who are showing their unwavering dedication to supporting and elevating female athletes, and I will proudly wear their logo in the ring during my historic battle against Katie Taylor on April 30th.”
Serrano, 33, a current Brooklyn resident who hails from Puerto Rico, is the newest member of FanDuel’s deep roster of exclusive sports betting talent and influencers that includes Pat McAfee, Charles Barkley, Jordan Spieth, Kenny Smith and others.
Amy Howe, the chief executive officer, discussed the partnership in a news release.
“We are incredibly proud to partner with Amanda Serrano, a game-changer making history being the first woman ever to headline a fight at Madison Square Garden alongside Katie Taylor. At FanDuel, we are deeply committed to women in sports, from the office to the boxing ring, and partnering with Amanda is part of our ongoing support to invest in female athletes,” Howe said.
Serrano is signed with Most Valuable Promotions, run by Jake Paul and Nakisa Bidarian.
Considered the top two female fighters in the sport right now, the Serrano-Taylor bout was supposed to take place in 2020, but fell through due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The undercard will feature a junior middleweight match between Jessie Vargas and Liam Smith and also will include Franchon Crews-Dezurn vs. Elin Cederroos in a WBC/WBO/IBF/WBA Women’s Super-Middleweight title unification bout.
FanDuel Dominating New York
It was a big week in New York as FanDuel surpassed the $2 billion mark in handle.
Since its Jan. 8 launch of online betting, FanDuel has compiled a total handle of $2.09 billion with a Gross Gaming Revenue (GGR) of $143.9 million.
For the April 10-17 period, FanDuel posted another hefty number of $143.9 million, which was down from $142 million a week before. However, its GGR was a whopping $22.1 million, its highest figure to date.
