“DraftKings vs ESPN BET” used to be a straightforward footprint fight between two national sportsbooks angling for the same ESPN airtime. That framing broke in late 2025, and it broke in a direction most people typing the query don’t expect: ESPN BET is gone, and DraftKings is now the one wearing the ESPN partnership it used to compete against.
Myth: These Are Two Rival Sportsbooks Today
They aren’t, because only one of them still exists under its own name. PENN Entertainment launched ESPN BET in November 2023 under a roughly $1.5–2 billion, 10-year ESPN trademark license, rebranding what had been Barstool Sportsbook. PENN and ESPN mutually agreed to end that license early, and PENN retired the ESPN BET name on December 1, 2025, relaunching the same operator, licenses, and accounts as theScore Bet. Reporting at the time pointed to ESPN BET never cracking the top three US sportsbooks by market share as the reason both sides walked away.
Twist: DraftKings Took the Job ESPN BET Was Built For
Here’s the part that makes this comparison stranger than the usual dead-brand writeup: DraftKings became ESPN’s official sportsbook and odds-data partner for the 2026 season — the same kind of media integration ESPN BET existed to provide. It’s a marketing and data arrangement, not an acquisition of PENN’s business, so DraftKings didn’t buy ESPN BET or theScore Bet. But anyone seeing DraftKings odds embedded in ESPN coverage in 2026 is looking at the practical result of the exact deal ESPN and PENN unwound a few months earlier.
If you had an ESPN BET account: it moved to theScore Bet automatically — same login, balance, and bet history. It did not move to DraftKings. Opening a DraftKings account is a separate signup, not a continuation of anything ESPN BET-related.
DraftKings vs theScore Bet (formerly ESPN BET)
| DraftKings | theScore Bet (ex-ESPN BET) | |
|---|---|---|
| Ownership | Independent, Nasdaq: DKNG | PENN Entertainment |
| ESPN relationship, 2026 | Official sportsbook & odds partner | None — trademark deal ended Dec 1, 2025 |
| Sportsbook footprint | 27 states + D.C. (Aug 2026) | ~20 states, unchanged since rename |
| Casino states | CT, MI, NJ, PA, WV | MI, NJ, PA, WV (Hollywood Casino brand) |
| Name history | DraftKings since 2012 DFS launch | Barstool → ESPN BET (2023) → theScore Bet (2025) |
Is Either One Safe If Your State Only Has One?
Neither the ESPN name nor the ESPN partnership changes who is actually licensed where you live. DraftKings is not live as a sportsbook in California, Texas, or Florida regardless of its ESPN deal. theScore Bet’s roughly 20-state map hasn’t grown since the rename. Check your own state’s page for each brand before the ESPN branding on either one influences the decision — a TV partnership is not a license.
Who Should Actually Care About This Comparison
Mostly two groups: people who had an ESPN BET account and are deciding whether to also open a DraftKings account now that DraftKings carries the ESPN branding, and people confused by seeing DraftKings odds inside ESPN coverage in 2026 and assuming DraftKings bought the old ESPN BET business. Neither assumption holds — your theScore Bet account is untouched and separate, and DraftKings’ ESPN deal is a licensing arrangement, not a merger. Betting is entertainment on both apps, never income. 21+ where legal; call 1-800-GAMBLER for help.