In late April 2026, FanDuel Sportsbook announced that FOX Sports NFL reporter Erin Andrews had joined the company as a “responsible gaming ambassador.”
While it may sound reassuring, the partnership raises public health concerns.
The press release failed to disclose Andrews’ financial compensation, raising questions of transparency. Fox Corporation has a stake in FanDuel, with an option to acquire nearly 19%.
What’s at Stake
The core concern pertains to the content of Andrews’ message.
Responsible gambling (RG) is a problematic concept. The World Health Organization has identified it as a message that shifts blame to users of products that can cause serious financial and mental health harm.
Warnings to gamble responsibly do not work. A systematic review of 166 studies shows that warnings to “gamble responsibly” are ineffective.
For these reasons, this relationship is fraught with risks and demands closer scrutiny.
Erin Andrews Normalizes FanDuel
Andrews is a trustworthy sports figure, FanDuel said in a press release. She has no documented prior sponsorship in the gambling industry. Her endorsement as a gambling outsider can make using FanDuel seem normal.
Online sports gambling is widespread in the U.S., with 27% of people reporting having an account with an online sportsbook, according to the Siena Research Institute (SRI).
Still, many millions more are potential users.
Despite high usage rates, legal sports betting is controversial. In October, the Pew Research Center published a survey showing that nearly half of men under 30 believe that legal sports betting is “bad for society.” Among all Americans, that figure is 43%.
Both percentages were significantly higher than in the same survey three years prior.
Andrews Makes FanDuel Seem Safer
With FanDuel and other betting apps normalized, Erin Andrews’ endorsement of “responsible gaming” risks making the platform appear safer than it is.
The Siena Research Institute found that 60% of online sports bettors report chasing losses, and 42% felt ashamed of their betting. Other state-specific surveys have found similarly high rates of at-risk and problem sports betting.
To further illustrate the point, a 2025 U.S. News survey found that one-quarter of sports bettors say they’ve been unable to pay a bill because of wagers they made.
A 2024 study found that just 4% of online bettors won money over a five-year period. In contrast, 85% of online bettors report believing they can reliably win money, according to SRI.
“FanDuel speaks openly about responsible gaming and emphasizes that gaming tools should be part of your winning strategy,” Andrews said in a video.
Potentially Exaggerated Efficacy Claims
FanDuel’s announcement does not state that Erin Andrews has firsthand experience using the company’s responsible-gaming tools. That matters because she is building public trust in features whose real-world effectiveness remains limited.
Studies don’t support voluntary RG tools as a meaningful population-level solution. These features may help some users, but they are ineffective when optional.
More fundamentally, they operate inside platforms designed to maximize habitual betting.
In some cases, self-exclusion tools don’t function properly.
An analogy is a cigarette with a filter for the harmful chemicals. The filter has some impact, but it’s not significant and doesn’t make the product safe. Public health experts, including those at the Public Health Advocacy Institute in Massachusetts, argue that online gambling should be regulated like tobacco.
FanDuel has RG ambassadors with lived experience, including Craig Carton and Randy Livingston.
Andrews Could Relate to Mothers
Celebrities and influencers are more likely to resonate with people who feel they can relate to them.
Erin Andrews’ mainstream sports persona could be especially reassuring to parents, including mothers worried about their teenage sons and young adults being pulled into betting apps.
Concern among parents appears to be growing. In North Carolina, for example, half of the calls to the state’s gambling helpline related to sports betting are from a parent of someone who is experiencing problem gambling.
Mothers of teen boys have reason to be wary of their children’s gambling activity. Andrews’ FanDuel endorsement may risk providing false reassurance and temporarily easing necessary parental concern.
Bottom Line
Erin Andrews’ endorsement of FanDuel under the banner of “responsible gaming” further legitimizes an industry with known public health consequences.
To make matters worse, Andrews’ use of the word “gaming” is a euphemism for sports gambling, which could mislead some people.
Her involvement may undermine, rather than advance, true public health goals. Through RG, FanDuel is looking to protect its bottom line and make user activity more sustainable. Just days before the Andrews announcement, FanDuel unveiled a new insurance feature for parlays and player props.
Andrews likely intends well, but her role is unlikely to meaningfully reduce the potential harm linked to FanDuel’s product.
FanDuel is part of a broader sports betting industry that took over $16 billion from Americans in 2025. That figure doesn’t include FanDuel Predicts, the company’s stock-market-style gambling platform.
Image credit FanDuel
