Rebranding in the US and Canada
PENN Entertainment is walking away from its high-profile sports betting partnership with Disney’s ESPN. It will end the ESPN Bet venture after just over two years of no profit.
The gambling operator confirmed on November 6 that it will rebrand the ESPN Bet app as theScore Bet starting from December 1. The change will consolidate PENN’s digital gambling business under a single name. It will also link the US and Canadian betting products.
CEO Jay Snowden said that the shift reflects a decision to concentrate on markets where PENN already has strong traction. He said that they are leveraging the strength of their US-based iCasino and Canadian operations. He noted that online sports betting will continue to help attract long-term customers and complement PENN’s in-person casinos.
PENN entered the ESPN Bet agreement in 2023. The 10-year-US$2 billion licensing deal cost $150 million a year and was intended to give the operator a commanding position in a crowded American online betting market. It came after its earlier Barstool Sportsbook experiment failed. The chief executive, Snowden, said at launch that PENN was aiming for a “podium position,” targeting a 20% market share.
That goal never materialised, and reports indicate ESPN Bet has captured only around 3% of the market. The contract’s three-year break clause allowed PENN to exit early. The company has chosen this pathway well before the clause’s official date, citing persistent losses and limited growth.
theScore Bet Performance
While ESPN Bet struggled to gain traction in the US, theScore Bet has been one of PENN’s few bright spots north of the border. Since Ontario opened its regulated iGaming market in April 2022, the brand has developed a strong foothold.
PENN purchased theScore and its media business in October 2021 for roughly US$2.1 billion. theScore’s media app attracts about four million monthly active users across North America. Roughly two-thirds of these people are in the US. PENN now plans to integrate this media app more closely with its betting platform.
theScore Bet has previously operated in several American states such as New Jersey, Iowa, Colorado, and Indiana. Those operations were closed in mid-2022 so the company could focus on Canada.
Beginning December 1, the platform will reappear in 19 states and in Washington, D.C., where ESPN Bet already holds licenses. It will also debut in Missouri, which is set to launch legal sports betting the same day. PENN said the new app will build on ESPN Bet’s existing framework rather than replicate the Ontario version exactly.
By ending the costly ESPN deal, PENN said it will free up capital to invest further in its Canadian business. Snowden believes that due to theScore’s brand recognition in Canada, Alberta could rank among PENN’s top areas when the commercial market opens next year.
