ESPN Bet Seamlessly Transforms into theScore Bet

The more things change, the more they stay the same for PENN Entertainment’s online sports betting site. For the third time, the site has a new name.

What originally was branded as Barstool Sportsbook is now theScore Bet. That’s the handle PENN chose to replace ESPN Bet when the agreement between the two parties came to an end on December 1.

On the website announcing the change, PENN billed theScore Bet as “the same betting app you love, just with a fresh new look.”

In reality, and legally, not much has changed, other than the name of the site.

A perusal of theScore Bet on December 1 displayed a platform that was virtually identical to the ESPN Bet platform. In fact, for ESPN Bet account holders, almost nothing changed.

There was no need to create a new account. Current account information remains valid, including login credentials and passwords. Bettors will be able to access their wagering history from ESPN Bet. All open wagers remain intact, and all funds in a player’s account also remain untouched. Players are also still able to link to the online version of Hollywood Casino directly from theScore Bet site.

One noticeable change is that account holders will no longer be able to link from their sports betting account directly to the ESPN web page. Instead, players can access theScore media site.

ESPN is now listed as the official sports betting partner of DraftKings.

ESPN Bet didn’t live up to the hype

Arriving on the scene a little over two years ago, ESPN felt it would storm into the sports betting realm and ultimately challenge DraftKings and FanDuel for the top spot among US online sportsbooks.

What they quickly discovered was that being the World Sports Leader carried no weight in the sports betting world. ESPN was never able to gain enough traction to grab more than 3-4% of the US online sports betting market.

“I think being late to the party was a big part (of the failure),” Sports gambling analyst Dustin Gouker told The Athletic. “I think by the time ESPN and PENN did the deal, a lot of the hay was in the barn. There wasn’t a whole lot (of market share left).”

Second chance for theScore Bet

ESPN Bet is the latest sports betting brand to be sent to the scrap heap in the US market. Just last week, Betly pulled its operation out of Tennessee. Betway, 888Sports, FOX Bet, WynnBet, Fubo, Tipico, PointsBet, SI Sportsbook, Twin Spires, Maxim Bet, SuperBook, UniBet, and Golden Nugget are some of the other brands that failed in the legal and regulated US market.

Of course, ESPN Bet’s predecessor, Barstool Sportsbook, belongs on that list, as does theScore Bet.

TheScore Bet was among the original online sports betting sites to launch when New Jersey first opened the door to widespread sports betting in 2018. However, the site enjoyed little success and was shut down in the summer of 2022.

PENN Entertainment purchased Canadian-owned Score Media for $2 billion in 2021. The company has offered theScore Bet brand as an online sportsbook in Ontario, Canada, since the Canadian province began offering online sports betting in the summer of 2022.

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