FanDuel, the only online platform that offers citywide sports gambling in D.C., said it stopped accepting bets as of Tuesday because Mayor Muriel E. Bowser (D) had not signed the city’s budget for the 2025 fiscal year, which allows for the continuation of sports betting in the city.
 
In a statement to The Washington Post, FanDuel said it would resume sports betting operations in the city “upon final approval of the FY2025 DC Budget.”
 
Bowser spokeswoman Susana Castillo initially told The Post on Tuesday morning that the mayor received the budget legislation — the contents of which go well beyond sports gambling — on Thursday and that she has 10 business days to review it. On Tuesday afternoon, in a move that appeared to remedy the issue, Castillo said the mayor returned the budget to the D.C. Council without her signature or a veto, allowing the sports gambling provision to take effect immediately.

A spokesman for FanDuel did not immediately respond Tuesday evening to a request for clarification on the company’s plans in the wake of the mayor’s move.

Caesars Sportsbook reportedly also was supposed to go live on a citywide basis Monday, but as of Tuesday, it, too, said gamblers needed to be in proximity to Capital One Arena, where it operates a brick-and-mortar sportsbook.
FanDuel said its brick-and-mortar sportsbook at Audi Field continues to accept wagers despite the pause in its online operations.
It was not immediately clear late Tuesday afternoon how quickly FanDuel would resume operations after Bowser returned the budget to the council or when BetMGM or Caesars Sportsbook would begin citywide mobile operations.

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