Penn Entertainment Inc is an American entertainment company that operates integrated entertainment, sports content, and casino gaming businesses. The company was founded in 1982 as Penn National Gaming.
PENN has reached a $2 billion deal with ESPN to become the exclusive sports betting partner of the sports media giants, dropping its existing betting website, Barstool. The website will be rebranded as ESPN bet with an exclusive right to the ESPN bet trademark for up to 20 years.
According to CNN, PENN agreed to pay ESPN $1.5 billion in cash payments over the next decade, and grant ESPN approximately $500 million worth of its shares. ESPN will also have the right to designate a member to PENN’s board of directors after three years.
With a major platform to reach sports fans across the country, ESPN (Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is one of the most popular sports media brands in the world, with a reach of over 70 million viewers.
It will be interesting to see how the deal impacts the way that ESPN covers sports betting. Will ESPN become more aggressive in promoting sports betting on its platforms? Or will it maintain its traditional focus on sports news and analysis? Stay tuned!
