The care that ESPN must take in discussing sports betting, now that it is in business with a sportsbook operator, was on display Sunday after one of the network’s personalities made a joke using some verboten wagering language.
ESPN host Rece Davis was on College Game Day Sunday with sports betting analyst Erin Dolan, who had just given out Northwestern Under 60.5 total points in an upcoming March Madness matchup with UConn, a winner. That was apparently after giving out some winners the day before.
"You know what?” Davis said on Sunday. “Some would call this wagering, gambling. I think the way you've sold this … I think what it is, is risk-free investment."
I can picture the Massachusetts Gaming Commission meeting already https://t.co/bUKtugSnRu
— Geoff Zochodne (@GeoffZochodne) March 24, 2024
The comment raised a few eyebrows on X, the former Twitter, even though it sounded like a joke. Davis then posted a two-part clarification later in the day that, yes, it was a joke.
“During a segment this morning on @CollegeGameDay, due to @ESPNBet picks hitting yesterday, I joked the advice was more like 'risk free investing,'" the ESPN personality said. “As we all know, such a thing does not exist. Obviously, there are risks. Though I’m not a gambler, I strongly encourage those who do partake, do so with prudence, care, caution, fiscal and personal responsibility and never over-extend.”
While a joke was made and then clarified, it's not the first instance Davis has used that term. Perhaps no harm was done, but the situation was emblematic of the type of concerns a few regulators had with the marriage of ESPN and gaming operator PENN Entertainment Inc.
The product of that partnership is ESPN BET, a new online sportsbook, which launched on Nov. 14 in 17 states. PENN is paying ESPN around $2 billion in cash and stock over 10 years for the rights to the ESPN brand, and ESPN is helping to promote the new bookmaker with ESPN BET integrations across its media operations, such as an ESPN BET tab on the ESPN homepage.
During a segment this morning on @CollegeGameDay,due to @ESPNBet picks hitting yesterday, I joked the advice was more like “risk free investing.” As we all know, such a thing does not exist. Obviously, there are risks. Though I’m not a gambler, I strongly encourage those who do
— Rece Davis (@ReceDavis) March 24, 2024
Talking about sports on television is already a tricky enough task and can lead to the occasional gaffe. However, a gaffe when talking about sports betting on television, when your employer is partnered with a sportsbook operator who has regulators watching them like a hawk, could land that operator in hot water.
ESPN has long been a leading source of information for sports fans and its reach is significant, meaning anything said on the network about sports betting will be seen and heard by many. That prompted at least one state regulator, the Massachusetts Gaming Commission, to press PENN about how ESPN would maintain journalistic integrity while acting as a marketing partner.
To help defuse those concerns, ESPN released sports betting-related employee guidelines in November that, among other things, banned insiders such as Adam Schefter from wagering on the leagues they cover. Those rules talked more about betting and news practices, though, not on-air language.
“There will be no connection between ESPN insiders, reporters, or the newsdesk with anyone who handles risk or trading for PENN,” Chris Rogers, PENN’s chief strategy officer, told the Massachusetts Gaming Commission in November. “ESPN will continue to report on news as it always has, while PENN will separately and independently manage the sportsbook. PENN will not have access to ESPN’s news-production software.”
Watch your language
Yet the language used in connection with sports betting is being tightly monitored by regulators.
In particular, terms such as “risk-free” have fallen out of favor with lawmakers, and legal sports betting firms have dropped them. That may account for the follow-up from ESPN's Davis on Sunday.
“Sports are unpredictable,” Davis posted on X. “Wagering is tricky. So let’s agree to manage monetary risks appropriately. I’m sure most recognized my comment was tongue-in-cheek. Just to clarify.”
