Penn National Doubles Down on Sports Betting, Acquires theScore

For 52 years, Penn National Gaming focused almost exclusively on horse racing and casinos, but since 2020, it has made a hard push into sports betting.

On Thursday, the company announced that it is acquiring Score Media and Gaming, operator of theScore, for approximately $2 billion.

The move gives Penn an established sports betting and media presence in Canada, where single-event sports betting is expected to become legal by the end of the year.

Penn purchased a 36% stake in Barstool Sports in January 2020 at a $450 million valuation. The company will increase its stake in Barstool to 50% in 2023, when it will also have the option to purchase the rest of the sports media and betting enterprise.

theScore’s sportsbook launched in 2019 and is available in Indiana, Iowa, Colorado, and New Jersey. Its score tracking and sports news app has over 4 million monthly users.
Analysts predict theScore’s yearly revenue will reach $85 million in 2022.
theScore’s intellectual property is an equally valuable component in the transaction.

“Importantly, the transaction provides us with a path to full control of our own tech stack,” said Penn CEO Jay Snowden. “theScore has developed a state-of-the-art player account management system and is finalizing the development of an in-house managed risk and trading service platform.”

Score Media and Gaming’s stock was up over 76% following the announcement. Penn’s stock climbed 6%.