Sports broadcaster Turner Sports and casino giant Caesars Entertainment will partner in creating gaming-themed content, including the development of a studio branded by Bleacher Report inside the sportsbook at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas.
The announcement Thursday is the latest partnership to come about since legalized sports betting became a growing industry across the U.S. According to a joint statement, the Bleacher Report studio will be the central hub for a variety of gaming-themed programing and editorial content distributed through the online Bleacher Report and its mobile application.
Financial figures were not disclosed, and a time frame for the studio’s development, as well other details about the venture, will be released in the coming months.
The arrangement appears similar to the three-year-old Vegas Stats & Information Network (VSiN), which operates a studio inside the South Point Casino’s sportsbook that broadcasts shows discussing betting odds and other sports-related content on satellite radio and streaming. Hall of Fame broadcaster Brent Musburger is one of VSiN’s featured personalities.
VSiN opened a studio inside the sportsbook at the Ocean Resort Casino in Atlantic City this past fall.
Last month, Las Vegas casino owner Derek Stevens said a VSiN studio would be part of his planned Circa Resort & Casino in downtown Las Vegas, which is expected to open in 2020.
“Gaming content will be a key driver for increasing fan engagement across all platforms, including time spent watching live sporting events and other criteria that impact television viewership,” Turner Sports President Lenny Davis said in a statement. “The sports gaming industry is rapidly growing. We’re excited to form this groundbreaking relationship with Caesars.”
For Caesars, the deal marks another push by the gaming company to increase its foothold in the legal sports betting marketplace. Seven states, along with Nevada, have allowed sports books in casinos and racetracks. More than a dozen states could legalize sports betting this year.
In addition to Nevada, Caesars operates sportsbooks inside its casinos in Atlantic City and Mississippi.
In January, Caesars became the initial Official Casino Sponsor of the National Football League, although the agreement focuses on non-gaming attractions and the casino “category,” not sports betting or daily fantasy sports.
According to the statement, Caesars will be prominently featured as a Bleacher Report gaming category partner through both content offerings and distribution platforms. Caesars will also be a presenting sponsor of select programming airing across Turner’s linear networks, in addition to opportunities for co-produced programing and events.
“Aligning with one of the most influential brands in all of sports media allows Caesars Entertainment to amplify its sports-gaming experience for guests across our global empire and also reach millions of fans who engage with Bleacher Report for premier content every day,” Caesars Entertainment CEO Mark Frissora said in a statement.
Bleacher Report touts itself as the “No. 1 digital destination” for younger sports fans, reaching “more than 250 million fans each month” across Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.
Caesars has nearly 40 properties in 13 states under the Caesars, Harrah’s, Horseshoe and Bally’s brands. Seven NFL teams – Atlanta Falcons, Baltimore Ravens, Chicago Bears, Indianapolis Colts, New Orleans Saints, Oakland Raiders and Philadelphia Eagles – already have marketing “relationships” with Caesars properties.
The company also has corporate deals with the NBA’s Philadelphia 76ers and New Orleans Pelicans and the NHL’s New Jersey Devils, and announced a sports betting partnership in January with the Oneida Indian Nation’s Turning Stone casino in New York.
In November, Caesars became the first casino company to sign a partnership deal with the under-construction $1.8 billion Las Vegas Stadium, which will house the NFL’s now-Oakland Raiders starting in 2020. The team is developing the 65,000-seat domed stadium near the Las Vegas Strip and will move to Southern Nevada and become the Las Vegas Raiders before the 2020 season.
Howard Stutz is the executive editor of CDC Gaming Reports. He can be reached at hstutz@cdcgamingreports.com. Follow @howardstutz on Twitter.
