FanDuel’s Amy Howe Voted American Gambling Awards 2024 C-Suite Executive Of The Year

Amy Howe, chief executive officer of U.S.-based FanDuel, has been named the American Gambling Awards 2024 C-Suite Executive Of The Year.

Howe, a graduate of Cornell University and The Wharton School, has held several top roles in business, including serving as president and chief operating officer of Ticketmaster.

Since being named FanDuel’s CEO in February 2021, Howe has led the company to new heights in the highly competitive online sports-betting industry. This has included developing and strengthening relationships with professional sports leagues, helping FanDuel differentiate itself from its competitors.

“This year, FanDuel leveraged its partnerships with the NFL, NBA, WNBA and MLB to deliver access to their streaming services through unique offers for fans,” the company said.

Also under Howe’s guidance, FanDuel continues to roll out innovative ways for fans to bet, including the introduction this year of The Pulse, “a narrative-driven format, offering a streamlined path to discover what is happening in a game in real-time.”

“The Pulse allows fans to wager on a point guard picking apart the defense or on a forward who is lighting up the scoreboard with threes,” the company said.

In an interview with Gambling.com, Howe said FanDuel’s focus “continues to be on executing a sustainable winning strategy.”

“FanDuel sets itself apart through our superior product experience, strong consumer protection tools and the most markets with best pricing,” she said. “Our advantages in those key areas are underpinned by unparalleled scale which has delivered us to our number-one position today. We look forward to continuing to elevate our product and encouraging customers to only use our product as a form of entertainment and within their limits.”

A Champion For Women In Gaming Leadership

In her role at FanDuel, Howe has been a trailblazer for women in gaming.

As FanDuel notes in a statement to Gambling.com, Howe “is the only female CEO in an industry that remains dominated by men.”

“Amy’s passion for women’s development can be seen through initiatives which have been brought to life under her leadership,” the company said. “Under Amy, The Women’s Leadership Development Program launched, which is an umbrella program focused on accelerating women into future leaders. The program has two components – one focusing on senior-level women and the second component on emerging women leaders. Amy’s passion for guiding the next generation of leaders can be seen in her work.”

Recently, Gambling.com interviewed Howe regarding women attaining leadership roles in the gaming industry. Below are her responses.

Question: How has your leadership role opened new avenues of success for women in gaming? Why is this important?

Howe: Creating an environment that invites and encourages women to express their voice matters because I am an enormous believer in diversity of thought helping to propel businesses forward. Driving representation both within FanDuel and across the gaming and sports ecosystem is extremely important to me. It is something we are passionate about from the top down, as our parent company Flutter has a goal to have 40% of leadership roles held by women by the end of 2026. Our success depends on our people, and it is critical to create a culture where everyone can thrive.

Question: What is The Women’s Leadership Development Program and what is its goal?

Howe: The Women’s Leadership Development Program is one of many initiatives we have stood up designed to accelerate the careers of women by providing tailored support for both seasoned executives and emerging leaders. The program focuses on senior-level women’s leadership development and on identifying and accelerating the career arc of emerging women leaders. The six-month program pairs participants with an internal coach to aid their development, allows for exposure to C-Suite executives and offers a coaching program with an external party designed to build skills in key areas critical for emerging female leaders.

Question: What advice would you give to women wanting to enter the gaming industry and move into leadership roles? What challenges can they expect?

Howe: I would advise anyone who wants to join this industry to always keep an open mind and seek out opportunities to learn from different perspectives. There will always be challenges along the way and you may need to make pivots throughout your journey, but those are times to lean on colleagues and mentors to help guide the way forward. I love being part of this community and encourage any women who is curious to learn more.

 ‘Well-Deserved Honor’

Howe said winning the American Gambling Awards C-Suite Executive of the Year “is a huge honor.”

“This wouldn’t be possible without my team at FanDuel who continues to deliver an industry leading product experience for our customers,” she said. “Thank you to the American Gambling Awards for this honor.”

Charles Gillespie, Gambling.com Group co-founder and chief executive officer, said the company is “delighted” to recognize Howe as the C-Suite Executive of the Year.

“Under Amy’s outstanding leadership, FanDuel has furthered its leadership position in the U.S. online gambling market to heights which many industry observers didn’t think possible,” Gillespie said. “A relative newcomer to the industry, Amy has already left an indelible mark I am excited to see where Amy’s leadership can take the industry next. Congratulations to Amy on this well-deserved honor.”

American Gambling Awards Categories

The Gambling.com Group’s annual American Gambling Awards highlight the top companies, products and executives in the regulated U.S. online gaming market. The awards were first presented in 2019. Winners receive a Golden Eagle trophy in recognition of their achievements in the industry.

This year’s winners were selected by a panel of 20 judges. Below are the 12 categories for the 2024 American Gambling Awards.

1.   Online Casino of the Year

2.   Gaming Product of the Year

3.   Betting Product of the Year

4.   Online Sportsbook of the Year

5.   Platform Provider of the Year

6.   Data Service Provider of the Year

7.   Payment Service Provider of the Year

8.   Responsible Gaming Award

9.   Dealmaker of the Year

10. Policymaker of the Year

11.  Regulator of the Year

12.  C-Suite Executive of the Year

For more information, visit www.gambling.com/us/awards.