The NFL’s New York Jets has asked a court in Delaware to appoint a receiver as it looks to collect on at least some of the $12.4 million in sponsorship fees the team is owned by FuboTV, the parent company of the now-defunct Fubo Sportsbook.
An attorney for the Jets — Jonathan Stemerman of Armstrong Teasdale LLP — filed a lawsuit in the Delaware Chancery Court on November 7. The justice hall is an equity court based in the state of Delaware.
FuboTV and the Jets announced a multi-year partnership in September 2021. The agreement called for building a Fubo-branded lounge and retail sportsbook at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, NJ, and for Fubo Sportsbook to become a presenting partner for the Jets’ mobile app.
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Shutdown Surprised NY Jets
In October, FuboTV announced it would take down Fubo Sportsbook sites in Arizona, Iowa, and New Jersey. The decision to shut the book down caught state regulators by surprise.
The shutdown appears to have surprised the Jets, too. But even more alarming to the team was that FuboTV reportedly missed a $1.2 million payment to the Jets due on October 1. According to reports, the payment was one of several expected to fulfill the deal from September 2021 — a five-year sponsorship deal valued at $12.4 million.
In a letter to the court, attorneys for the Jets reportedly claimed that FuboTV acted in “bad faith” but also said the team was willing to discuss their dispute with the company and come to a “mutually agreeable resolution.”
At first blush, it didn’t appear that the company was interested in discussing any dispute with the Jets. “We believe this petition is without merit and intend to vigorously defend our position,” a spokesperson for FuboTV said, according to reports.
Caesars Had Helped Get Fubo Started
Fubo Sportsbook was live in Arizona, Iowa, and New Jersey when it was taken down. It also had market access to an additional four states — Indiana, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Missouri — through agreements with Caesars Entertainment, the first of which was signed in March 2021.
At the time of the Caesars deal, the ill-fated sportsbook had already clinched market access in Iowa through a separate agreement with Casino Queen Marquette, a riverboat casino. Fubo Sportsbook IA launched in November 2021.
One month later, Fubo Sportsbook AZ launched in Arizona under the land-based casino license of Harrah’s Ak-Chin Casino, a tribal property owned by the Ak-Chin Indian Community. Caesars operates the casino.
Despite being the most populous state of the three, Fubo went live with its NJ sports betting app last — in September 2022, under the Caesars license.
Other Partnerships Upended
Celebrations over the launch in New Jersey were muted, however. That’s because one month earlier, FuboTV announced it had put its sportsbook business “under strategic review” and told analysts and shareholders that it could no longer afford to operate the platform without an outside investor.
In the end, FuboTV could not find an investor, and it shut down Fubo Sportsbook.
Fubo picked up a market access agreement in Pennsylvania with The Cordish Companies in July 2021. It is assumed that Fubo Sportsbook PA would have tethered to Live! Casino Pittsburgh.
The company also partnered with the NBA’s Cleveland Cavaliers and MLS’s Houston Dynamo FC.
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