DraftKings and Caesars Entertainment stocks jump and they ink deals with ESPN

ESPN has agreed to co-exclusive multi-year deals with DraftKings and Caesars Entertainment, the company announced on Monday. Both deals will integrate betting data from DraftKings and Caesars throughout ESPN’s digital platforms.

DraftKings will become ESPN’s exclusive daily fantasy sports and co-exclusive sportsbook provider. Caesars Sportsbook by William Hill will be the exclusive odds provider and co-exclusive sportsbook provider, according to ESPN.

“Our new agreements with Caesars and DraftKings collectively represent the next significant milestone for ESPN to diversify our exposure and deepen our commitment in the sports betting space,” said Mike Morrison, Vice President of Business Development & Innovation, ESPN. “We began growing the experience through content, followed by odds utilizing William Hill’s sports betting data and a new state-of-the-art studio facility in Las Vegas through our deal with Caesars, and now with the addition of DraftKings, we are bringing together the sports media leader with two of the top brands and best products in the segment.”

Sportsbooks have been attempting to make deals with media companies in order to attract eyeballs to their platforms. CBS has signed a similar odds deal with William Hill, and Barstool Sports has partnered with Penn National Gaming PENN, +6.87%.

“We are very excited to be expanding our relationship with ESPN to include deeper integration of both our sports betting and daily fantasy sports offerings across their platforms,” said Jason Robins, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of DraftKings. “ESPN’s reach amongst sports fans is unparalleled, and the start of NFL is the perfect time for DraftKings to be launching this integration.”

Sports leagues like the NFL and the NBA have also made content partnerships with DraftKings.

DraftKings DKNG, +14.90% is up 12%, William Hill WIMHY, +8.30% is up 8% and Caesars Entertainment CZR, +8.38% is up 8% in early afternoon Monday trading.