State of the Union: ESPN-ESPN Bet now linked, Missouri initiative opposition, more

Welcome to iGB's State of the Union, a look at the biggest North American sports betting stories we've covered over the week and briefs on others we found interesting.

ESPN Bet-ESPN linking now available

On Friday (1 November) Penn Entertainment and ESPN announced that ESPN and ESPN Bet accounts can now be linked. Consumers can “seamlessly track upcoming, live and settled bets within the ESPN app and on ESPN.com.” Connecting accounts will also allow ESPN Bet to offer personalised promotions and bets.

“Bringing this new feature to market is an important step as we work to create a fully interconnected media and betting ecosystem between ESPN and ESPN Bet,” Aaron LaBerge, chief technology officer at Penn Entertainment said via press release. “Account linking allows us to better serve and engage our users by unlocking key personalisation and promotional capabilities. This feature is just the beginning of deeper integrations that will further differentiate the ESPN Bet experience.”

New opposition in Missouri

The St Louis City Democratic Central Committee on 29 October announced that it opposes Amendment 2, the legal wagering initiative. The group supports Amendment 5, which would add a new casino licence in the state. The sports betting initiative has the support of more than 25 local politicians, all of the state’s professional sports teams, the mayors of Kansas City and St Louis and the two biggest newspapers in the state. But according to Spectrum News, the committee opposes it because operators will be allowed to deduct promotional play, which would ultimately cut into state tax revenue.

Conservative Senator Caleb Rowden and Progressive Senator Brian Williams don’t usually agree on much. However, they both support Amendment 2 because legalizing sports betting means more than $100 million for Missouri schools, which will give our students a brighter future. Vote… pic.twitter.com/d6LkWAlHfo

— Winning for Missouri Education (@yeson2missouri) October 29, 2024

Attorney general candidate Elad Gross also said he would oppose the measure. Gross says it does not provide enough funding for problem and responsible gaming initiatives.

RSI’s Schwartz: “Exceptional performance” in Q3

Rush Street Interactive (RSI) announced a buyback programme and said revenue was up 37% year-over-year during its Q3 earnings call on 29 October. The company said revenue reached $232 million and adjusted EBITDA was $24.3 million, four times last year. Executives revealed a programme to buy back $50 million worth of shares.

RSI also raised its guidance for the year. The company adjusted its EBITDA projections up 24%, to between $82 million-$86 million.

“We are excited to report that we have achieved another quarter of exceptional performance, setting new quarterly records in both revenue and adjusted EBITDA,” CEO Richard Schwartz said in a press release. “These record results highlight the effectiveness of our strategic initiatives and ability to execute. Our focus on innovation to attract and retain high-value players continues to drive significant growth and profitability.

“Our strategy has yielded broad based growth and success across all of our geographies and products. We’ve accelerated player growth for another consecutive quarter, acquired significantly more players with much greater marketing efficiency, all the while increasing our player values.”

Affiliate crash: First Catena, then Better Collective

Last week, we got the news that Catena Media announced a $43.3 million down writedown was coming. Twenty-nine jobs were slashed. The company’s Legal Sports Report and PlayUSA are stalwart affiliate news sites in the gambling world.

What was left of Sports Handle and US Bets, which earlier this year were folded into the Action Network, have now been dismantled by Better Collective. On Tuesday (29 October), Better Collective slashed its staff, including all of those who worked for Sports Handle. The move came after the Danish company announced it would not meet analyst expectations. It is seeking to cut $54 million.

Better Collective stock reached a high of $322.50 on 18 February. Down to $216.50 on 22 October, it had spiralled to $139.60 by 1 November.

The bloodlettings have left an enormous number of gambling industry reporters, marketers, tech staff and others out of work. Former Catena journalist Dustin Gouker reached out to colleagues to start a “reverse job board.” Those out of work can post their particulars and companies in the industry (and beyond) are invited use the list as a hiring tool. Gouker runs The Closing Line consultancy and Substack page.

Auditor calls out Nebraska Racing and Gaming

Nebraska’s chief auditor on Monday (28 October) ripped the state’s racing and gaming commission, per the Omaha World Herald. Mike Foley questioned the agency’s ability to oversee casino tax revenue, calling past performance “lacklustre at best and oftentimes completely nonexistent.”

From the audit: “Without such a basic level of understanding, the Commission was woefully unprepared to ensure, with any level of confidence, that the authorised gaming operators were paying the appropriate amount of gaming taxes.”

The Nebraska Racing and Gaming Commission collected $20 million in taxes in FY 2024. According to the audit, the commission overcollected from WarHorse Casino Lincoln by $279,064. It also undercollected from Harrah’s Columbus by $76,184.

Caesars completes WSoP sale

Caesars Entertainment completed its sale of the World Series of Poker (WSoP) intellectual rights to NSUS Inc, the company announced on Tuesday (29 October). The sale was for a total of $500 million (£386.6 million/€461.1 million), with $250 million up front and the balance due in five years.

Caesars will continue to operate the WSoP live events in Las Vegas for 20 years. In addition, NSUS will licence Caesars to operate its WSoP online real-money poker business in Nevada, New Jersey, Michigan and Pennsylvania. Other than those events, Caesars will be restricted from offering peer-to-peer online real-money poker for an unspecified amount of time.

As part of the transition, Ty Stewart (CEO), Gregory Chochon (COO) and Erik Eidissen (communications) will transition to the new WSoP executive team within NSUS.

Worth the read

With the announcement on 1 November that ESPN and ESPN Bet are now linked so users can see their bets on both platforms and have access to stats, results and more, we’re reminded of how the lines between sports media and sports betting are blurring. Awful Announcing last week took a deep-dive into the subject with a focus on how this intersection impacts college athletes.

In other news…

The Public Health Advisory Institute (PHAI) on 30 October filed a lawsuit against the Massachusetts Gaming Commission. Filed in Massachusetts Superior Court, the PHAI contends that the commission has failed to make anonymised data available to researchers.

The Colorado Division of Gaming has opened a window for applications for its Responsible Gaming Grants programme. The grants are for non-profits “hoping to make a positive impact in gaming”. Non-profits that have or are developing programmes around responsible gaming, community development and other areas are invited to apply. The application window will be open until 1 December.

Caesars this week launched its Horseshoe Casino brand in Ontario, Pennsylvania and West Virginia, according to company press releases. The platform, which is designed to appeal to the “more seasoned player”, debuted in Michigan in early October. It is Caesars’ sixth digital brand.

Horseshoe Online Casino is officially LIVE in West Virginia 🗣️
Those in the Mountain State can enjoy a player-centric gaming experience on a cutting-edge online casino app and desktop platform 🎰
Developed for the seasoned casino player, Horseshoe is the most legendary place to… pic.twitter.com/I7TXo0A6BI

— Caesars Entertainment (@CaesarsEnt) October 30, 2024

Rush Street Interactive on Monday (28 October) introduced a new NBA promotion that pairs betting parlays with digital sports cards. According to a press release, consumers who bet $10 or more on a same-game parlay will receive up to three “prop packs”. If a player on the card scores more than the listed point total, the customer wins.

DraftKings is closing its live dealer studio at New Jersey’s Golden Nugget and 101 employees will be laid off. The studio has been in place since 2019 under the DraftKings and then Golden Nugget brands.