DraftKings Launching Missouri Sports Betting With Trio of Show-Me State Legends

• DraftKings will celebrate the launch of Missouri sports betting with three sports legends
• DraftKings will host a ceremonial first bet with Tony Gonzalez, Isaac Bruce, and Brett Hull
• Missouri sports betting is set to launch on Monday, Dec. 1, at midnight

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DraftKings Missouri is enlisting the help of several Show-Me state sports legends for its upcoming sports betting launch.

Missouri sports betting is set to launch on Monday, Dec. 1, at midnight, the only state to launch a new sports betting market in 2025. DraftKings today announced it will host a ceremonial first bet event at The Palladium in St. Louis, featuring Missouri sports icons NFL Hall of Famer Tony Gonzalez, NFL Hall of Famer Isaac Bruce, and NHL Hall of Famer Brett Hull.

The three NFL and NHL legends will make the first DraftKings ceremonial online sports bets and will be joined by Missouri House Speaker Jonathan Patterson (R-30), who will provide remarks during the launch.

Supporting Veterans Community Project

In addition to the ceremonial first bet program, DraftKings will donate $50,000 to the Veterans Community Project, a nonprofit organization dedicated to ending Veteran homelessness in Missouri. The donation will support the Veterans Community Project’s Tiny Homes initiative, which provides transitional housing, comprehensive care, and services to help Veterans successfully transition to independent living.

Missouri will be DraftKings’ 29th operational U.S. state, in addition to Washington, D.C., Puerto Rico, and Canada.

“DraftKings is built for passionate sports fans, making Missouri an exciting jurisdiction for us to enter with its rich sports culture, and several professional teams across the state,” said DraftKings’ Chief Revenue Officer Greg Karamitis. “This is an incredible time of year for sports fans with NFL, NBA, NHL, college football, and college basketball all in-season, and we look forward to elevating the experience for Missouri sports fans, responsibly, with our top-rated online sportsbook.”

DraftKings Partners With St. Louis Blues

As DraftKings readies for the Missouri sports betting launch, it aligned a new partnership with the NHL’s St. Louis Blues. The Blues recently announced an agreement designating DraftKings as an official sports betting and daily fantasy operator.

As part of the agreement, DraftKings will spotlight responsible gaming through a pregame, in-arena feature, encouraging fans to play responsibly in Missouri.

“As we get ready to launch our best-in-class online sportsbook for Missouri sports fans, we’re excited to deliver the fun and entertainment we’re known for in a responsible way, alongside the Blues,” said Stephanie Sherman, Chief Marketing Officer at DraftKings. “The Blues’ strong fan base and forward-thinking mindset make them an ideal collaborator as we look to elevate the fan experience in Missouri.”

Missouri Launching Sports Betting Next Week

Missouri is launching its online and in-person sports betting markets on Monday, Dec. 1, at midnight.

Account registration is now officially open. The Missouri Gaming Commission opened account registration and funding for its nine online sports betting licensees; DraftKings Missouri, Circa Missouri, FanDuel Missouri, Underdog Missouri, Fanatics Sportsbook Missouri, Caesars Sportsbook Missouri, theScore Bet Missouri, bet365 Missouri, and BetMGM Missouri.

However, PENN Entertainment and ESPN BET Missouri recently announced the cessation of their 10-year sports betting partnership, with PENN officially rebranding its sports betting platform to theScore Bet and ESPN BET shuttering its doors on Dec. 1.

So, how can interested customers register accounts now for theScore Bet, which has yet to be rebranded from ESPN BET? It’s fairly simple. Users can register an account right now with ESPN BET, which will be rebranded to theScore Bet on Dec. 1, 2025.

A spokesperson for theScore Bet reported all funds and promos users receive for signing up an account will automatically transfer over to the new platform.

PENN Entertainment will retain its database of 2.9 million digital users acquired during the ESPN relationship. Snowden reported more than 300,000 new users registered with the company since the start of the NFL season.