ESPN BET had every intention of entering the lucrative New York mobile sports betting market before the beginning of the NFL season. However, regulators had different ideas, and it was not until September 27th that the newcomer finally made its arrival in the Empire State.
Late Arrival
Penn Entertainment’s mobile sports betting brand, ESPN BET, has had its share of struggles since launching last November. Penn Entertainment paid $1.5 billion over 10 years to lease four magical letters, E-S-P-N, and gain access to its media platforms to give its digital sports betting platform instant recognition and credibility.
However, the sledding has been tougher than anticipated, and Penn’s stock has suffered because of it. But getting a foothold in the nation’s largest mobile sports betting market, New York, was expected to be a watershed moment for the brand, which is why Penn purchased Wynn Interactive Holdings’ New York licenses in February.
After all, six months seemed to be a reasonable amount of time to clear all the regulatory hurdles and get the license transferred before the sports betting industry’s most active season—football.
Delayed Approval
Jay Snowden, PENN Entertainment CEO and President, said at the time, “This is an important development that will bring ESPN BET to the largest regulated online sports wagering market in North America. Together with ESPN, we’re building a brand that is synonymous with sports betting, and operating in the New York market is key as we grow ESPN BET across the U.S.”
Unfortunately, for Penn, the New York State Gaming Commission (NYSGC) had yet to put the license transfer on its agenda until on or around September 23rd, several weeks after the NFL season kicked off. This was another unexpected setback that had those at ESPN BET reeling, but there was nothing that could be done except wait for the green light from the NYSGC.
That approval finally came in late September, allowing for a soft launch on September 26th before a full launch the following day. New York’s mobile sports betting market now includes nine top-rated sportsbooks, with ESPN BET joining Fanatics, FanDuel, Caesars, BetMGM, DraftKings, BetRivers, Bally Bet and Resorts World Bet.
Weekend Debut
Friday, Saturday and Sunday proved to be a fairly good debut for New York’s latest arrival to its digital sports betting market. ESPN BET showed a handle of $3.04 million and revenues of $165,673 on a modest 5.4% hold, or win rate, for its first three days in operation. We should also note that ESPN BET’s handle of 3.04 million was more than Bally Bet and Resorts World Bet did in the entire month.
For the week ending September 29th, FanDuel‘s $198.2 million handle, generating $24.2 million in revenue on a 12.2% hold, took the top spot, besting its archrival Boston-based DraftKings, which reported a $196.3 million handle, delivering $17.4 million on an 8.9% hold.
Fanatics had an impressive week, reporting a $39 million handle, which eclipsed both BetMGM ($37.2 million) and Caesars ($34.7 million) for the last full week in September.
