FanDuel Sportsbook Under Construction At Mob-Era Fremont Las Vegas

Construction is underway to renovate the sportsbook inside the historic Fremont hotel-casino in downtown Las Vegas and brand it with the FanDuel name.

As of mid-October, much of the seating in the current small sportsbook had been removed. A cocktail bar once located near the sportsbook has been obscured by a construction wall labeled “Building a Better Fremont.” 

Television screens are still located behind the ticket window, and four electronic betting odds boards with the “Boyd Gaming” brand are mounted on a sidewall near the main ticket counter. During construction, sports betting is available at the ticket counter.

The Fremont is owned by Las Vegas-based Boyd Gaming. 

FanDuel and Boyd have entered an arrangement to co-brand the renovated sportsbook and share in the revenue. 

The day-to-day operations still will be handled by Boyd employees, with FanDuel providing information, advice and support on matters from odds-setting to risk management.

FanDuel Sportsbook To Open By Year’s End

In August, FanDuel officials said the renovation should be complete by the end of 2022. 

By mid-October, FanDuel’s name was not visible anywhere in the sportsbook.

When the renovation and rebranding are complete, the sportsbook will include an HD video wall, seating for 76 patrons, four ticket windows and seven self-service betting kiosks.

An official name for the sportsbook has not been announced, though the online bookmaker previously said it could be called “FanDuel Sportsbook at the Fremont,” or something similar.

The sportsbook arrangement does not include a FanDuel mobile app being available for bettors in Nevada, though the company is expected to seek approval in the future to operate an app in the state.

Boyd owns about 5% of FanDuel, whose parent company is Dublin, Ireland-based Flutter Entertainment.

The Boyd Sports wagering app will remain active. Boyd also owns the Main Street Station and California hotel-casinos in downtown Las Vegas.

Fremont History Includes Mob Connections

The Fremont, which first opened in the downtown’s Glitter Gulch in 1956, is among the most storied hotel-casinos in the Las Vegas Valley.

The Fremont is where singer Wayne Newton, now known as Mr. Las Vegas, got his start as a performer at age 15.

During the Mob era, the Fremont was among other Argent Corp. casinos, most notably the Stardust, that were illegally overseen by oddsmaker Frank “Lefty” Rosenthal, a Chicago Outfit associate. In the 1995 Las Vegas Mafia movie “Casino,” Robert De Niro portrays a character based on Rosenthal.

Last year, the $4.3-billion Resorts World hotel-casino opened on the west side of the Las Vegas Strip where the now-demolished Stardust once stood. The casino-lined Strip is south of downtown, outside Las Vegas city limits. 

Also during the Mob era, Ida Devine, an underworld money courier, transported illegally skimmed casino revenue from the Fremont casino to mobster Meyer Lansky in South Florida. 

During these trips, Devine was known to travel by train, starting at the Las Vegas passenger station. 

The Las Vegas train station was located where the Plaza hotel-casino now stands at Main and Fremont streets.