ESPN Bet, theScore secure NHL sports betting partnership
ESPN Bet and theScore are the newest “Official Sports Betting Partners” of the National Hockey League (NHL).
In a statement released Wednesday, the NHL announced ESPN Bet and Penn Entertainment’s theScore as the newest partners of the Professional Hockey League. The agreement gives the sportsbook intellectual property rights as well as media and marketing integration rights to the entire NHL program.
ESPN Bet launches Nov. 14 in 17 states. The sportsbook is Penn Entertainment's rebranded Barstool sportsbook offering, with the Pennsylvania-based casino operator agreeing to donate $1.5 billion to ESPN over 10 years to support the sports media brand's sportsbook operations.
It’s absolutely exciting to be one of the first leagues to partner with ESPN Bet,” said Jason Jazayeri, NHL Vice President of Business Development.
“We’ve said from day one that our media rights agreement with ESPN and The Walt Disney Company is a huge win for our fans and our league, and this new partnership is further evidence of that The value of partnerships,” Jazayeri continued. “The NHL is younger, faster and more exciting than ever, providing tremendous opportunities for fan engagement and responsible gaming experiences.”
ESPN Bet's partnership with the NHL is for U.S. operations, while the Score deal is for Ontario operations.
Marketing Blitz
ESPN Bet and theScore are official sports betting partners of the NHL, along with DraftKings, FanDuel and BetMGM.
Penn is marketing its ESPN Bet sportsbook in an attempt to steal some market share from the industry leader. DraftKings and FanDuel hold about 75% of the U.S. sports betting market.
Several other high-profile sportsbooks are also trying to undermine their position, including BetMGM, Caesars Sportsbook and Fanatics. ESPN Bet is off to a strong start, with its app downloaded 1.1 million times in its first week - a record number of downloads for a US sports betting platform.
Although ice hockey betting pales in comparison to football, basketball and baseball, Penn officials said the NHL deal will give ESPN Bet and theScore access to more sports bettors.
"As an official partner, we can more fully engage hockey fans, develop compelling integrations and leverage NHL programming in unique ways." This is also an important partnership for theScore Bet in Ontario, where hockey is popular The degree is unparalleled," said Aubrey Levy, senior vice president of marketing and content for Penn Interactive.
ESPN Betting Review
Early bettors at ESPN Bet criticized the sportsbook for not taking into account the parlay push. One bettor named Kelce Johnson split his five-round bet this week
Most sportsbooks will recalculate parlay odds if a single bet comes in and another bet wins and pays out that amount. But ESPN Bet apparently voided the entire bet.
Johnson's tweet has been viewed more than 3.5 million times since it was posted on Nov. 26. ESPN betting
@ESPNBet@ESPNBetSupport Can you point out the section of your charter that governs the entire push? I've never seen this in any other book I've written.pic.twitter.com/YwjqBIs7w9
— Kelce Johnson, 2022 (@CalculatorGrant) 27. November 2023
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Source: www.casino.org
