“This is about new growth opportunities to expand ESPN’s brand and audience and increase fan engagement, especially as more states legalize sports betting,” says Morrison. Sports book revenue in the US hit $7.5 billion in 2022, up 75 percent from the 2021 total of $4.29 billion. In America, 34 states have now legalized sports gambling, and Americans have wagered $245 billion since the 2018 Supreme Court decision.

“This new deal ties the ESPN brand to betting in a deeper and more direct fashion, but it’s not a fundamental shift for Disney.”Īs streaming giants, searching for profitability, cut costs, hike prices, and clamp down on password-sharing, ESPN Bet feels like a punt for a surer revenue stream. “Sports betting has been baked into the ESPN experience for years,” says Chris Grove, CEO of American Affiliate, a sports betting investment portfolio. DraftKings and FanDuel, PENN’s rivals with a 70 percent market share on sports betting in the US, advertise prominently on ESPN. The Daily Wager, ESPN’s sports betting show, launched in 2019 and has been a ratings hit. Yet, in the words of former Disney CEO Bob Chapek, ESPN’s marriage with sports betting has proven too “ perfect” to miss. This is the same Disney, remember, that prohibited casinos on its cruise ships and fought the expansion of gambling establishments in Florida. “When billions of dollars are on the line, apparently does not mind jumping into bed with a sports gambling platform,” says Darren Heitner, the founder of the sports law firm Heitner Legal. In 2023, Iger admitted that he “was probably on the more conservative side about for a long time,” worried that any association would damage the company’s family-friendly values, but that-provided Disney wasn’t playing bookie-his opinion had shifted with public acceptance. Disney CEO Bob Iger’s move here is a notable one.

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