To call Fanatics a “sports merchandise company” in 2025 is like calling Amazon a “bookstore.” It’s a description so outdated it’s almost comical. The current affair at Fanatics is one of breathtaking, aggressive, and industry-altering expansion. Under the leadership of CEO Michael Rubin, Fanatics is transforming from a dominant e-commerce player into a fully-integrated, end-to-end global digital sports platform.
If 2024 and 2025 have taught us anything, it’s that Rubin’s ambition has no ceiling. Fanatics is no longer content to just sell you the jersey; it wants to be the platform where you buy the jersey, bet on the game, collect the player’s trading card, and attend the exclusive post-game event.
The pace of its recent moves is staggering. In just the past year, Fanatics has inked a dizzying number of new partnerships. It has expanded its deal with lululemon and the NHL, taken over retail operations for the Cincinnati Bengals, and signed new global merchandising deals with giants like Football Australia, Chelsea FC, and Inter Milan. It has even partnered with YETI, proving it can move beyond apparel into all aspects of a fan’s life.
But “Commerce” is now just one pillar of the empire. The company is making a seismic push into new verticals. Fanatics Betting and Gaming (PointsBet) is aggressively rolling out its online sportsbook across the US. In a truly audacious move, it launched Fanatics Casino and announced a partnership with WWE to produce branded online casino games, blurring the line between sports fandom and iGaming.
Then there’s Fanatics Collectibles (Topps), which is solidifying its dominance in the trading card world. And in a new venture, Fanatics is moving into digital content, announcing a new network partnership with Logan Paul for his Impaulsive podcast.
Perhaps the most tangible example of this “all-in-one” vision is Fanatics Fest. This massive, in-person convention is the company’s answer to Comic-Con, a physical manifestation of its ecosystem where fans can meet athletes, buy exclusive merchandise, and engage with all aspects of the Fanatics brand.
To tie this sprawling empire together, Fanatics recently launched “Fanatics ONE,” a new enterprise-wide loyalty program. This is the strategic linchpin. Now, a fan who buys a jersey, places a bet, and buys a trading card can earn and burn “FanCash” across all platforms. This creates a powerful, sticky ecosystem that is nearly impossible for a competitor to replicate.
Fanatics is no longer in the sports merchandise business. It is in the fandom business. Its current strategy is to build a vertically integrated monopoly on what it means to be a sports fan in the 21st century, and based on its 2025 performance, it is succeeding at an astonishing speed.
