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Abstract Direct laser acceleration (DLA) of electrons in plasmas of near-critical density (NCD) is a very advancing platform for high-energy PW-class lasers of moderate relativistic intensity supporting Inertial Confinement Fusion research. Experiments conducted at the PHELIX sub-PW Nd:glass laser demonstrated application-promising characteristics of DLA-based radiation and particle sources, such as ultra-high number, high directionality and high conversion efficiency. In this context, the bright synchrotron-like (betatron) radiation of DLA electrons, which arises from the interaction of a sub-ps PHELIX laser pulse with an intensity of 1019 W/cm2 with pre-ionized low-density polymer foam, was studied. The experimental results show that the betatron radiation produced by DLA electrons in NCD plasma is well directed with a half-angle of 100–200 mrad, yielding (3.4 ± 0.4)·1010 photons/keV/sr at 10 keV photon energy. The experimental photon fluence and the brilliance agree well with the particle-in-cell simulations. These results pave the way for innovative applications of the DLA regime using low-density pre-ionized foams in high energy density research.