PENN Entertainment, Inc. (“PENN” or the “Company”) (Nasdaq: PENN) and the National Hockey League (“NHL”) announced today a partnership that designates PENN’s online sports betting brands, ESPN BET in the U.S. and theScore Bet in Ontario, as Official Sports Betting Partners of the NHL.
As official league partners, ESPN BET and theScore Bet will have access to a host of entitlements, including IP rights, and media and marketing integrations across League programming and premium NHL experiences.
ESPN BET, which launched on November 14 in 17 states, is a newly-branded online sportsbook operated by PENN Entertainment that combines ESPN’s industry-leading brand and multiplatform reach with PENN Entertainment’s proprietary in-house technology and deep sportsbook operational expertise.
PENN’s entitlements will begin immediately and span the NHL regular season, Stanley Cup® Playoffs, 2024 NHL Winter Classic®, 2024 NHL Stadium Series™, and 2024 NHL® All-Star Weekend. The partnership between PENN and the NHL will also include collaboration for best-in-class game integrity procedures.
“There’s definite excitement in being one of the first leagues to partner with ESPN BET and PENN Entertainment,” said Jason Jazayeri, NHL Vice President, Business Development. “From day one we’ve said our media rights deal with ESPN and The Walt Disney Company has been a big win for our fans and our League, and this new collaboration is further testament to the value of our partnership. The NHL is younger, faster and more exciting than ever, and delivers tremendous opportunity for fan engagement and responsible gaming experiences. We’re looking forward to working with ESPN BET in the U.S. and theScore Bet in Ontario to engage our passionate fan base.”
“The recent launch of ESPN BET in the U.S. is extremely exciting and we’re thrilled to collaborate with the NHL to help market our new sports betting experience,” said Aubrey Levy, Senior Vice President, Marketing and Content, Penn Interactive. “Becoming an official partner allows us to more broadly engage hockey fans, develop compelling integrations and uniquely leverage NHL programming. This is also a key partnership for theScore Bet in Ontario, where the popularity of hockey is unmatched.”
NHL, the NHL Shield, the word mark and image of the Stanley Cup and the wordmark NHL Winter Classic are registered trademarks and the NHL Winter Classic logo, NHL Stadium Series name and logo, and NHL All-Star logo are trademarks of the National Hockey League. © NHL 2023. All Rights Reserved.
About PENN Entertainment
PENN Entertainment, Inc., together with its subsidiaries (“PENN,” the “Company,” “we,” “our,” or “us”), is North America’s leading provider of integrated entertainment, sports content, and casino gaming experiences. PENN operates 43 properties in 20 states, online sports betting in 18 jurisdictions and iCasino in five jurisdictions, under a portfolio of well-recognized brands including Hollywood Casino®, L’Auberge®, ESPN BET™ and theScore Bet Sportsbook and Casino®. In August 2023, PENN entered into a transformative, exclusive long-term strategic alliance with ESPN, Inc. and ESPN Enterprises, Inc. (together, “ESPN”) relating to online sports betting within the United States. PENN’s ability to leverage the leading sports media brands in the United States (ESPN) and Canada (theScore) will position us to significantly expand our digital footprint and efficiently grow our customer ecosystem. This highly differentiated strategy, which is focused on organic cross-sell opportunities, is reinforced by our market-leading retail casinos, sports media assets, and technology, including a proprietary state-of-the-art, fully integrated digital sports and iCasino betting platform and an in-house iCasino content studio. PENN’s portfolio is further bolstered by our industry-leading PENN Play™ customer loyalty program, which offers our over 27 million members a unique set of rewards and experiences across business channels.
About the NHL
The National Hockey League (NHL®), founded in 1917, consists of 32 Member Clubs. Each team roster reflects the League’s international makeup with players from more than 20 countries represented, all vying for the most cherished and historic trophy in professional sports – the Stanley Cup®. Every year, the NHL entertains more than 670 million fans in-arena and through its partners on national television and radio; more than 191 million followers – league, team and player accounts combined – across Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Snapchat, TikTok, and YouTube; and more than 100 million fans online at NHL.com. The League broadcasts games in more than 160 countries and territories through its rightsholders including ESPN, WBD Sports and NHL Network in the U.S.; Sportsnet and TVA Sports in Canada; Viaplay in the Nordics, Baltics, and Poland; YLE in Finland; Nova in Czech Republic and Slovakia; Sky Sports and ProSieben in Germany; MySports in Switzerland; and CCTV5+ in China; and reaches fans worldwide with games available to stream in every country. Fans are engaged across the League’s digital assets on mobile devices via the free NHL® App; across nine social media platforms; on SiriusXM NHL Network Radio™; and on NHL.com, available in eight languages and featuring unprecedented access to player and team statistics as well as every regular-season and playoff game box score dating back to the League’s inception, powered by SAP. NHL Original Productions and NHL Studios produce compelling original programming featuring unprecedented access to players, coaches and League and team personnel for distribution across the NHL’s social and digital platforms.
The NHL is committed to building healthy and vibrant communities using the sport of hockey to celebrate fans of every race, color, religion, national origin, gender identity, age, sexual orientation, and socio-economic status. The NHL’s Hockey Is For Everyone® initiative reinforces that the official policy of the sport is one of inclusion on the ice, in locker rooms, boardrooms and stands. The NHL is expanding access and opportunity for people of all backgrounds and abilities to play hockey, fostering more inclusive environments and growing the game through a greater diversity of participants. To date, the NHL has invested more than $100 million in youth hockey and grassroots programs, with a commitment to invest an additional $5 million for diversity and inclusion programs over the next year.
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