Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

ESPN Winds Down PENN Partnership – Why is ESPN Bet Shutting Down?

Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

ESPN is ending its betting partnership with PENN Entertainment, closing ESPN Bet just two years into a 10-year $1.5 billion deal. The platform, launched in 2023, integrated sports betting into ESPN’s digital ecosystem and streaming app. However, the shutdown, effective around December 1, 2025, follows mutual agreement due to unmet market share goals.

BREAKING: ESPN and Penn Entertainment are ending their sports betting partnership.

After signing a 10-year, $2 billion deal in 2023, ESPN Bet will officially shut down next month (with eight years left of the initial agreement). pic.twitter.com/CG2Te90hQ4
— Joe Pompliano (@JoePompliano) November 6, 2025

Why ESPN Bet is Closing Down?

The partnership allowed termination after year three if performance thresholds weren’t met. ESPN and PENN cited only financial underperformance, but not the ongoing NBA gambling scandal involving game manipulation allegations. They stressed financial underperformance as the core reason, even as the league grapples with those DOJ charges from last month, involving players like Terry Rozier and coaches like Chauncey Billups in game manipulation schemes.

Despite attracting 2.9 million users and a surge in first-time bettors this fall, ESPN Bet failed to capture expected market dominance, and now PENN will rebrand the service as TheScore Bet and shift focus to iCasino and retail casino operations. All the remaining payments to ESPN cease in quarter four, ending a two-year relationship.

What’s Next for ESPN?

ESPN will transition to an exclusive partnership with DraftKings starting December 2025, with full integration across its platforms by 2026. DraftKings products will be deeply embedded in ESPN’s ecosystem to enhance the integrated betting experience.

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Chairman Jimmy Pitaro emphasized building on existing user engagement to grow direct-to-consumer offerings while serving passionate sports fans. PENN remains an ESPN advertising client, and the only remnant of the old deal is the linear show ESPN BET Live.

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I cover the National Football League and things cannot get better than that. I always dreamed to play football or basketball professionally since I’m built like a Running Back. But now that I can’t, since I’m technically in the “Unc” age, I thought why not pick a career in sports industry? So here I am, doing what I love, and hoping that the Commanders win the Super Bowl. I give love to players when it’s due, but can be critical about their performances at the same time. Enough about me, now let my articles do all the talking.