It’s been a busy week in sports betting industry news and it’s still only Thursday. But in the past few days some major moves have happened and they’re worth recapping. Caesars and William Hill made a multibillion-dollar deal, that’s billion with a B. And DraftKings is having quite a time with a couple announcements of their own, one of which involves Gisele Bundchen. No big deal or anything.
In case you missed them, here is a wrap-up of the events that went down in the business of sports betting this week...
Gisele Bundchen joins DraftKings:
DraftKings announced supermodel goddess Gisele Bundchen has signed on with them as a special advisor to the company’s CEO and board of directors for environmental, social, and governance initiatives. Just in time for Earth Day.
“Gisele Bündchen is a global icon who has utilized the platform she established in modeling, fashion, and entertainment, to lead and advocate for vital environmental and social causes,” said Jason Robins, co-founder, CEO and Chairman of the Board of DraftKings. “I believe that the strategic counsel and unique global perspective that Gisele brings to me and the board will be indispensable and, as evidenced by our Earth Day campaign, her impact will be immediate and far-reaching.”
With Bundchen, wife of Tom Brady, DraftKings said it plans to complete a lofty goal by this time next year.
“DraftKings is committed to fighting global sustainable development challenges, including climate change, in alignment with the U.N.’s sustainability development goals,” the press release stated. “In collaboration with Bündchen, DraftKings has set a goal of planting 1 million trees by Earth Day 2022.”
DraftKings partnering with Sling TV on sports betting info channel:
DraftKings was busy this week! The company also signed a deal with Sling TV to collaborate on a channel devoted to sports betting information with real-time game scores and betting odds on the DraftKings Basketball channel.
“This new channel is just the beginning of how we plan to bring the DraftKings sports betting experience to SLING TV customers,” said Michael Schwimmer, President of Sling TV, in the press release. “We will continue expanding and enhancing our offerings to be the ultimate entertainment experience for sports fans.”
Sling also plans to launch DraftKings Baseball and DraftKings Hockey channels in the next few weeks.
Caesars purchases William Hill:
Caesars Entertainment expanded its empire this week by purchasing William Hill for “approximately” $4 billion.
"We are thrilled to complete the acquisition of William Hill, combining two of the premier operations in the sports betting and iGaming industries under one roof," said Tom Reeg, CEO of Caesars Entertainment, in the press release. "We look forward to announcing future sports partnerships that will drive long-term growth."
The combined companies expect to be operational in 20 U.S. jurisdictions by the end of 2021.
Some great news this week for the expansion of the sports betting industry. And you can bet it will only keep growing.
Lucy is a sports betting content producer with Radio.com and BetQL. She has worked with WEEI and Radio.com as a writer, radio producer and podcaster. Lucy lives in Boston and loves Tom Brady and prop bets. Follow Lucy on Twitter at @LucilleBurdge.