Boston-based fantasy sports and betting company, DraftKings, recently celebrated the official launch of their brand new office in the heart of Dublin’s city centre. Covid-19 failed to stop the Boston team from joining everybody in Ireland for a night of celebrating their arrival in what DraftKings’ Chief Technology Officer, Travis Dunn, referred to as “the premier location for sports technology talent in Europe.” Travis also noted in his speech that Dublin and Boston were a great pairing due to the obvious history between the two as well as the ease of accessibility with direct flight operating between the two cities. He went on to mention how other tech companies that began operating here were delighted with how things were going within the industry in Ireland. Ireland’s new wave of many great tech engineers was praised by Travis.

Dan Kesack, the Director of Engineering at DraftKings, discussed the rapid growth and development of fantasy sports in the United States and how it would continue to soar exponentially over the coming years. This would require a greater workforce and would continue to create more opportunities in the sports technology industry over the years to come. He heralded Ireland as a tech hub, stating that they have came here and “immediately been able to find very talented people that hold a passion for sports”, something that is essential in the industry. “The sky is the limit here in Dublin.”, he concluded.

Numerous members of the Boston and Dublin teams were present to attend and were enthralled by the positive mentalities shown by everyone leading DraftKings’ charge into the Irish market and workforce. Our very own, SportsTech Ireland co-founder, Grainne Barry was amongst speakers on the night, wishing all of the team well and looking forward to the future opportunities that lie ahead for further collaboration.

All those in attendance were treated to a tour of the state of the art facilities in the new office. The office accommodates up to 30 employees and features fantastic murals on it’s walls.

There were several conferencing rooms, fully kitted out with the finest facilities and each aptly named after an Irish sporting star.

From all of us here at SportsTech Ireland, we would like to wish DraftKings every success in the future. This can only continue the trend of international companies arriving in Ireland and providing more jobs in the ever expanding industry. We look forward to more opportunities like this one coming around again!