Entertainment
PENN Entertainment has revealed that it has rebranded a total of ten retail sportsbooks in several major states. The rebranding affects 10 locations across Kansas, Louisiana, Maryland, Ohio, and Michigan, with the retail sportsbooks now operating under the ESPN Bet name and visual identity.
PENN Continues with ESPN Bet Rebranding across the US
The company is launching the ESPN Bet sportsbooks at Ameristar Casino Hotel Council Bluffs in Iowa and further afield at Hollywood Casino Grantville, Hollywood Casino York and Hollywood Casino Washington in Pennsylvania.
Other locations impacted by the latest rebranding are Youngstown and Dayton Hollywood Gaming as well as the Ameristar Casino Black Hawk in Colorado. More locations include Ameristar East Chicago in Illinois and Hollywood Lawrenceburg in Indiana, as well as Hollywood Casino Charles Town in West Virginia.
This is part of a broader agreement signed between PENN Entertainment and ESPN to rebrand the existing Barstool Sportsbooks owned by the former to ESPN Bet. In August 2023, the two companies signed a $2-billion 10-year contract which has seen ESPN Bet emerge as the next largest sportsbook in the country.
ESPN Bet Gains Ground as PENN Pushes Forward
So far, there are 20-odd locations that operate under the ESPN Bet brand as of right now, with more locations to be rechristened to the ESPN brand and identity. Last week, Hollywood Casino at Penn National Race Course and Hollywood Casino York also confirmed that they are rebranding to ESPN Bet.
PENN’s decision to divest from Barstool Sportsbook as its front brand comes amid a difficult spell for the company, which eventually found itself selling the IP rights back to its founder, David Portnoy, who bought it for $1. PENN had previously spent $551 million, exposing itself to criticism.
ESPN Bet is not in a great place right now, but PENN and ESPN are leveraging their respective expertise, presence in the sports world, and knowledge of operations to secure better results. Presently, however, ESPN Bet is estimated to account for only 2.8% of the online sports betting market in the United States, a far cry from the hoped-for 20%.
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Fiona Simmons