Is DraftKings Sportsbook Teaming Up With ESPN?
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DraftKings Sportsbook is one of the top mobile sportsbooks in the industry, and the platform has made some major partnerships with different entities. However, the platform’s biggest deal might be coming soon.
DraftKings appears to be on the way to a partnership with ESPN, arguably the biggest sports network out there. This would make great waves across the world of mainstream sports entertainment and sports wagering, continuing to blur the lines between the two. Here’s everything you need to know about what could potentially be the largest partnership in the history of DraftKings Sportsbook.
DraftKings And ESPN Could Be Partnering Up Soon
DraftKings has come a long way since its start as a daily fantasy sports platform. The platform has released one of the top sports betting apps with DraftKings Sportsbook, as well as an iGaming platform with DRaftKings Casino. Additionally, the company has expanded into the NFT market with the rollout of DraftKings Marketplace. Now, the sports betting brand might be on the verge of a major media partnership.
According to Yahoo! Finance, DraftKings Sportsbook is getting close to a partnership with ESPN. While immediate details aren’t available on the potential deal, it appears that the intention is for the sports media giant to embrace the rapidly growing sports betting industry by teaming with one of its largest platforms.
Both sides have been fairly silent about the potential partnership, so it will be interesting to see if and when an announcement comes through. Additionally, it appears as though the partnership news has given DraftKings a stock market bump.
$DKNG stock opens regular trading up more than 4% following reports of a significant DraftKings deal with ESPN; $DIS down more than 2% on another rough day for markets overall
— Ryan Butler (@ButlerBets) October 7, 2022
Does This Mean There Won’t Be An ESPN Sportsbook?
For quite some time now, there have been rumblings of ESPN, or its parent company Disney, launching its very own sports betting app. This wouldn’t make ESPN the only sports media company to launch its own betting platform, as seen with SI Sportsbook from 888 Holdings and Authentic Brands Group. However, there’s still no word on how a DraftKings deal would affect the rollout of an ESPN sportsbook.
Because of the major risks involved with entering the competitive sports betting industry, it makes sense that a massive company like ESPN would prefer to dip its toe in the water before developing a brand new sportsbook.
It's time for Bet!@AnitaMarks, @erinkatedolan and @Tyler_Fulghum get you ready for an AFC showdown between the Colts and the Broncos. Plus, the crew discussed MLB Wild Card round odds and look ahead to NFL Week 5 💸 https://t.co/L7AudpNSa3
— ESPN (@espn) October 6, 2022
ESPN Appears To Be Betting Big On Wagering Content
The DraftKings partnership wouldn’t be ESPN’s first foray into the world of wagering by a long shot. The biggest example of this is Daily Wager, a betting-focused show hosted by Tyler Fulghum. The show was previously hosted by Doug Kezirian, who now has a larger role developing ESPN betting content. The channel has even begun adding extra talent recently to boost its sports wagering content.
Last year, ESPN brought on Erin Dolan as a sports betting analyst, now appearing on Daily Wager and hosting the Snapchat program Bet With Erin Dolan. And before the start of the football season, ESPN hired Liz Loza from Yahoo! Sports to focus on not just sports betting, but fantasy sports as well. ESPN also produces a number of sports betting podcasts, such as the audio version of Daily Wager, Behind the Bets with Doug Kezirian, and Fantasy Focus Football.
