What Happens Now For ESPN Bet Users Ahead of Closure?

• ESPN Bet will officially close on Dec. 1, 2025
• PENN Entertainment said the company will rebrand its online sports betting presence to theScore Bet
• Platform will automatically rebrand to theScore Bet and will not require download

ESPN Bet will be no more on Dec. 1, 2025, but what does that mean for its nearly 3 million users?

As part of the PENN Entertainment and ESPN mutual agreement to terminate its online sports betting partnership, PENN Entertainment will rebrand its entire U.S. online sports betting market to theScore Bet in December.

Both theScore Bet and Hollywood iCasino will continue to operate in the U.S. as standalone apps moving forward.

No New App Required

According to PENN Entertainment CEO Jay Snowden during today’s Q3 earnings report, PENN will rebrand its U.S. online sports betting product to theScore Bet on Dec. 1, 2025, which is subject to regulatory approval.

PENN Entertainment will retain its database of 2.9 million digital users acquired during the ESPN relationship. These users will automatically transfer to theScore Bet, which will not require users to download a new app or register new account information.

Snowden reported more than 300,000 new users registered with the company since the start of the NFL season.

The app will simply be rebranded to theScore Bet, with user information, account balances, and any futures bets automatically transferred to the new platform.

“The current app will be automatically updated to theScore Bet when you open it on the date of transition. All account information, balances, betting history, pending bets, marketing offers and promotions will transfer over automatically. There will be no new app to download or new registration process to go through,” Snowden said.

PENN Entertainment will also move forward with its Missouri online sports betting plans. The company recently received a temporary online sports betting license from the Missouri Gaming Commission and plans to launch in the Show-Me State on Dec. 1, 2025. The company is using its Hollywood Casino and River City Casino locations in Missouri to enter the market.

ESPN Bet Never Reached Market Share Goals

Under the terms of the original deal, both ESPN and PENN Entertainment had the right to terminate the agreement after its third year if specific market share performance thresholds were not met.

ESPN Bet struggled in the U.S., never reaching its goal of being a top-three platform. ESPN Bet consistently maintained a top-six spot and reported a market share of less than 5% in the U.S.

“We are grateful for the exhaustive and collaborative efforts by our friends at ESPN and the PENN Interactive team to compete for a podium position in the highly competitive OSB space. Although we made significant progress in improving our product offering and building a cohesive ecosystem with ESPN, we were unable to establish ESPN Bet as a scale player,” Snowden said. today.

When the deal was announced in summer 2023, PENN Entertainment agreed to pay $1.5 billion to ESPN over the initial 10-year term and grant ESPN approximately $500 million of warrants to purchase 31.8 million PENN common shares. As part of the deal, PENN Entertainment included potential financial incentives for ESPN dependent on ESPN BET reaching performance thresholds for North American online sports betting market share.