Tale of Two Markets
There is a stark performance divide between Penn's two sports betting brands, ESPN Bet in the US and theScore in Canada.
The Bulletin Board
THE LEDE: ESPN Bet struggles in the US, while theScore cleans up in Canada.
ROUNDUP: NJ sweeps bill; DraftKings Predict; Casino parking lots; OK Tribe adds crypto payments.
NEWS: CT bill imposes betting limits and authorizes interstate online poker.
VIEWS: Press conference announcing the reintroduction of the SAFE Bet Act.
AROUND the WATERCOOLER: Sweepstakes rhetoric is heating up.
STRAY THOUGHTS: The difference between deliberate practice and busywork.
SPONSOR’S MESSAGE - Yes, Sporttrade is indeed a prediction market. Always has been.
The Lede: theScore Thrives; ESPN Bet Struggles
A recent newsletter from Gaming News Canada highlights the divergent results Penn is having in the US and Canadian online sports betting markets:
PENN CEO Jay Snowden said on the company’s Feb. 27 earnings call:
“theScore and theScore Bet continue to be a very good story for us in Canada. Ontario is our number one market in North America in terms of revenues, gross profit, and contribution margin today and we delivered another strong year of performance in 2024. We believe the strength in Canada will only grow once we launch in Alberta, pending all requisite approvals, given the affinity for and loyalty to the Score brand across the country.”
That makes ESPN Bet’s struggles all the more head-scratching, especially since Snowden’s following statement applies to both theScore Bet and ESPN Bet:
“We have a brand that resonates with not just people who love sports, but we also have a great casino product.”
Compare theScore to ESPN Bet, a partnership that may be headed for divorce. As I reported last week, Snowden hinted that progress was needed to continue the relationship past the three-year mark:
“When we announced our partnership with ESPN in the summer of '23, both sides of this partnership made it very clear that we expected to compete for a seat at the podium. And we're not on pace right now to do that… And of course, as you get into 2026, you hit the third anniversary of our relationship with ESPN, and both sides expect to be in a really good place. I mean we are heads down laser-focused. We have tremendous plans in place for 2025 and 2026. But for whatever reason, if we're not hitting the levels that we need to… You have a 3-year clause in the contract that both sides will have to do what's in their best interest.”
So what explains the different experiences? Snowden offered one reason: “I think Canada is actually a good market for us in the sense that there's a no-inducement policy there. So you really are competing based on your brand, your product, and the experience.”
Or plainly put, you can’t spend your way to the top with bonus dollars.
Roundup: NJ Sweeps; DraftKings Predict; Casino Parking Lots; OK Tribe Adds Crypto Payments
New Jersey bill regulating sweepstakes turns into prohibition bill: As reported by Daniel Wallach on X, "New Jersey Assemblyman Clinton Calabrese scrapped his previous effort to license and regualte sweepstakes sites (A 5196) as gambling sites. Calabrese filed AB 5447, which would “prohibit sweepstakes model of wagering” and “establish new penalties for unlawful gambling operations and practices.”
Link to A 5447
DraftKings registers with National Futures Association: Scoop from Dustin Gouker: “DraftKings has apparently registered a prospective business that would intersect with prediction markets with the National Futures Association. The NFA is the self-regulatory organization for the US derivatives industry. DraftKings Predict is listed as a pending member, and the phone number and address on the listing both belong to DraftKings.”
The parking lot for New Hampshire’s newest casino is in MA: This kind of defeats the purpose of limiting the number of casinos in a state: “The newest casino in New Hampshire is so close to Massachusetts that visitors who park out front must step across the state line to come in through the main entrance,” the Boston Globe reports.
Choctaw Casinos add crypto payment options: Interesting development given the Trump administration’s pro-crypto policies: “Choctaw Casino & Resort customers can now fund their gaming with cryptocurrency, thanks to a new partnership with Bitline, a provider for casino chip access directly from cryptocurrency, and Everi,” according to CDC Gaming Reports. “Customers are first boarded, screened, and verified by Bitline, allowing patrons to move screened crypto assets into custody, leveraging the payment infrastructure provided by Everi’s CashClub.”
SPONSOR’S MESSAGE: Protect your players and grow your tribal gaming business with GeoComply.
Looking to implement mobile Class II gaming? We go beyond simple compliance, delivering seamless player experiences and ironclad security.
If your casino is going cashless, is someone monitoring the activity on the mobile device while it transfers funds to your casino? That’s what we do. We detect device integrity issues and give you actionable insights to mitigate any AML, OFAC, and CTF risks.
Book a meeting with us at the Indian Gaming Tradeshow & Convention (Booth #2541) and discover how GeoComply will bring you more customers, fight fraud, and protect your revenue.
News: CT Bill Sets Wager Limits & Legalizes Online Poker
A new bill in Connecticut, SB 1464, would allow Connecticut to join the Multi-State Internet Gaming Agreement (MSIGA) — Connecticut legalized online poker in 2021, but due to the state’s small population, neither licensee (Mohegan Sun and Foxwoods) has launched an online poker platform.
However, as Casino Reports noted, deeper into the bill is a clause that would create wagering limits (left undefined) on online sports bets.
“(C) disclose the maximum sports wagers established for online sports wagering; and (3) require the Commissioner of Consumer Protection to adopt regulations establishing maximum sports wagers for online sports wagering.”
This is just one of many gambling-related bills in the Connecticut legislature:
SB 1235 bans lottery courier services, sweepstakes, and certain types of sports betting wagers.
HB 5563: Authorize sports wagering on a sporting event in which one or more participants in such sporting event is a Connecticut intercollegiate team.
HB 5579: allow retail operators to void bets with errors prior to the start of the sporting event.
HB 5778: Require two-way markets for all sports wagering in this state.
HB 5564: Establish a maximum hold percentage.
HB 5565: Enable consumers to elect not to view certain sports, sporting events or types of sports wagering.
HB 6051, Would “authorize and regulate in-flight sports wagering on scheduled flights originating or terminating in this state.”
NEWS: Tonko and Blumenthal Reintroduce SAFE Bet Act
Rep. Paul Tonko and Sen. Richard Blumenthal will host a press conference at 3 PM EST outside the Capitol today to announce the reintroduction of the SAFE Bet Act.
You can watch the press conference here. Straight to the Point will be speaking with Harry Levant later this week for a forthcoming podcast episode.
The speakers will be:
U.S. Congressman Paul D. Tonko (D-NY)
U.S. Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-CT)
Andrew Douglas, individual in recovery for gambling disorder
Gordon and Lisa Douglas, parents of Andrew
Professor Richard Daynard, President, PHAI
Mark Gottlieb, Executive Director, PHAI
Harry Levant, Director of Gambling Policy, PHAI and gambling therapist
The bill hasn’t been published, and STTP is curious if there are any changes from last year’s effort, which was more of a “I go high” starting point.
The industry continues to downplay the threat, calling it everything from misguided to unconstitutional. Still, as I wrote for Casino Reports, “The SAFE Bet Act is a bigger threat to the licensed sports betting industry than many people want to believe.”
“Yes, Congress is a dysfunctional mess that can’t pass a budget and barely avoids shutting down the government every few months. That said, things do get done at the Capitol, and reining in overzealous online sports betting advertisements is precisely the type of measure Congress could find the votes to pass — or sneak into a larger bill at the 11th hour.
“All it needs is a spark to turn the pet project of a few lawmakers into a public health crisis — and there are plenty of fire hazards lurking.”
“Although the industry doesn’t think Congress should get involved with what has long been a state-level issue and doesn’t want Congress involved, I have a feeling this conversation will pick up steam in 2025.”
“The Safe Bet Act will sit untouched this year, but if I were a betting man, I would put a lot of money on it being reintroduced and making some hay next year, likely with a lot of discussion and debate about the particulars and a possible hearing.
And that was before the current brouhaha over prediction markets getting into sports betting.
Around the Watercooler
Social media conversations, rumors, and gossip.
Howard Glaser, Global Head of Government Affairs and Legislative Counsel at Light & Wonder (a newsletter sponsor) posted the full opening remark from Maryland State Sen. Corderman during the recent hearing to discuss his sweepstakes prohibition bill on LinkedIn:
“I have introduced this legislation to combat the proliferation of illegal online casinos which are ripping off Maryland citizens.
“Maryland residents are conned into wagering an estimated $6 billion on black market websites every year, including on so-called "sweepstakes casinos", which claim to simply be a sweepstakes contest but are in fact unregulated and untaxed gambling. These online casinos, which are often based offshore, evade consumer protections, responsible gaming and anti-money laundering requirements to which gambling in Maryland would otherwise be subject. Players report never getting their money back, and most disturbing, there are no prohibitions against minors playing these games, which offer cartoonish animation and dangle million-dollar jackpots. And these illegal online casinos present unfair competition to the state’s legal, highly regulated and economically important casinos.
“I applaud the efforts to date by the Lottery & Gaming Control Agency and the Attorney General’s Office who are working to combat illegal gambling. This legislation clarifies that online real money “sweepstakes casinos” constitutes illegal gambling and establishes penalties for operating or facilitating unregulated online gambling.
“The bill also makes sure that the entities supplying black market casinos -often tied to organized crime syndicates abroad - cannot be licensed in Maryland. We cannot tolerate a situation where we grant a gaming license to a company which is supplying illegal games.
“The legislation will force these illegal operators out of our state and provide a powerful deterrent to offshore and domestic illegal online gaming operators from entering the state.”
As I reported last week, the Maryland Lottery & Gaming Control Agency sent a letter of support for the bill, saying in part:
“Many Marylanders participate in these illegal games because the developers excel at presenting a product that appears to be fun, is initially presented as having no risk to the player, and there are no warnings to the user that they are engaging in illegal, unregulated gaming that will ultimately allow for cash deposits to be accepted and cash prizes to be awarded.”
Stray Thoughts
“We’re here talking about practice…”
I loathe the word homework; it’s practice work. And I 100% believe that it should be optional.
I own a martial arts school and can confidently say that most people don’t consistently practice. For most people, it’s extra work, and not everyone needs to put in the extra work. Sometimes it’s just doing it for the sake of doing it.
Whether it’s school, martial arts, or anything else, if you don’t put in the extra work, one of two things will occur:
It will show up on the test (you should have practiced)
It won’t show up on the test (I guess you didn’t need to practice after all)
Think of it this way; if you tell me I have to take a physical test in three months that requires me to do 25 consecutive pushups, plank for a minute, and run a mile in 10 minutes, I don’t need to put in any extra work — well, maybe for the mile. Change the requirements to 50 consecutive pushups, a two-minute plank, and a mile in eight minutes, and suddenly a little bit of practice is required. It’s up to me to determine if I need to prep for this.
The same is true for schoolwork. If you give a teenager busywork, they will turn in a rushed-through assignment or nothing. their mind will wander while doing it, and all you will get from it is a boatload of resentment. So make it optional, and let them find out for themselves through the test results.