The highly anticipated launch of ESPN Bet now has a target launch date.
The sports media giant announced on Thursday that the online sportsbook expects to make its debut on Nov. 14, subject to final approvals.
All told, ESPN Bet will launch in 17 markets, including the New Jersey sports betting industry.
ESPN Bet aims to join NJ sports betting Nov. 14
An official start date for ESPN Bet NJ comes less than three months after ESPN and PENN Entertainment agreed to a 10-year partnership.
At the time, Jimmy Pitaro, chairman of ESPN, called PENN the “right long-term strategic partner” to build ESPN Bet into “a leading US sports betting platform.”
It appears ESPN Bet will hit the ground running toward that goal when it goes live.
According to the press release, in leading up to the launch, ESPN will offer a sweepstakes for fans to win the chance at an exclusive trip to the ESPN headquarters in Bristol, Connecticut.
While also announcing the launch date, ESPN Bet also shared a brief teaser featuring Scott Van Pelt.
In addition, and unsurprisingly, ESPN will now only use official betting odds from ESPN Bet and rebrand it’s Daily Wager television program to ESPN Bet Live starting Nov. 10.
Can ESPN Bet challenge DraftKings, FanDuel?
ESPN gave us a glimpse at the mint-green branding for ESPN Bet, with the network calling the platform “a sportsbook for fans, but at its core is still ESPN, the most trusted brand in sports.”
PENN remains confident in ESPN Bet’s success and its potential to cut into the market share dominated by DraftKings and FanDuel, relying on the template that helped build theScore into a modest success in Ontario.
DraftKings and FanDuel certainly welcome the challenge. During the Global Gaming Expo in Las Vegas last month, DraftKings CEO Jason Robins called it “the purpose of legalization,” emphasizing the the ultimate goal is to eradicate illegal gambling. The more legal sportsbooks in existence, the more chances to “capture the illegal market.”
If you don’t do that, Robins added, “it kind of defeats the purpose of doing this.”
