ESPN Expanding Sports Betting Content With New Studio In Las Vegas

It’s viva Las Vegas for ESPN.

Located at The LINQ Hotel + Experience, the world leader in sports entertainment said it will expand much of its gambling content with Caesars to bring more robust sports betting and entertainment news to fans. Additionally, ESPN will move its sports betting show, Daily Wager, to the new studio beginning Sept. 8 and launch a new sports-betting-themed digital show this fall.

Having an ESPN studio in Las Vegas is a smart move

Obviously, there is no better place to host a gambling-themed show than the Las Vegas strip. So the move makes perfect sense for ESPN.

In a statement, Mike Morrison, VP of business development for ESPN, said the company is fortunate to have a partner in Caesars and looks forward to other opportunities.

“In our ongoing mission to serve sports fans, we are committing to a bigger presence both in Las Vegas and with our content across platforms to authe
ntically serve a fast-growing, highly engaged audience,” Morris said. “We are incredibly fortunate to work alongside a great partner like Caesars Entertainment to achieve this and look forward to collaborating on more opportunities in the future.”

The new 6,000-square-foot facility will come with several top-of-the-line amenities, including:

• Three studios
• 12 cameras
• Two exterior robotic cameras
• The ability to fully support 4K and launch in 1080p

According to a press release, the studio will also play a role during major sporting events, including the growing number of franchise and marquee events in Las Vegas.

Here is what Chris Calcinari, senior VP of remote production operations, ESPN and ABC Sports, had to say:

“Our new studio with Caesars is ideally located in the middle of The Strip and has been designed and built out with state-of-the-art UHD 4K-capable technology, a first for ESPN. We will leverage this technology and our innovative REMI production model to serve this growing audience of sports fans with the quality content for which ESPN is known.”

Expanding the sports betting content

As mentioned, Las Vegas should have been the only city considered for the home of Daily Wager, ESPN’s sports betting show. Hosted by Doug Kezirian, the show plans to return from hiatus on Sept. 8 on ESPN2. On Monday, Aug. 24, segments began being produced out of the new studio for Sports Center and additional platforms.

This fall, fans can also expect a new digital show to be made available three times a week on the ESPN app, Facebook, Twitter and YouTube that will include content originating from Caesars.

In addition to Daily Wager, other ESPN-betting related content includes:

• Behind the Bets with Doug Kezirian podcast from Las Vegas
• Stanford Steve and The Bearpodcast (football season)
• Bad Beats on SportsCenter with Scott Van Pelt
• Bettor Days with Mike Greenberg on ESPN+

“The appetite for sports betting content continues to grow among fans,” said Connor Schell, EVP of content, ESPN. “Our new studio will not only operate as the headquarters for that content, but it will also anchor our year-round presence in Las Vegas — a city that has become a destination for the biggest events in sports.”

There will be a number of events coming to Nevada in 2021 and beyond, including NFL betting now that the city is home to an NFL franchise.

Events on the horizon in Las Vegas include:

• Las Vegas Raiders Monday Night Football home opener — Sept. 21
• Las Vegas Bowl (NCAA football)
• Vegas Golden Knights
• NBA Summer League
• NFL Draft in 2022

 

Photo by Al Powers / ESPN Images