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New York's Books Took a Record $594.6 Million and Kept 2.85% of It
Priya Natarajan · Sep 17 · 6 min
By Priya Natarajan, TrueEdge Wire Staff · · not yet hands-on tested
Quick verdict
The book formerly known as ESPN BET, rebranded to theScore Bet in December 2025 after PENN and ESPN ended their $2B deal early. What remains is what was always good: a fast, media-native app with clever features and honest mid-pack lines. What remains unresolved is identity — this is the same book's third name in four years.
Best for media integration
What works
What doesn't
How these are produced: review methodology. The overall rating is the average of scored categories.
We track this book through its changes rather than through heavy first-hand use, so this review leans on the record: the December 1, 2025 migration from ESPN BET carried accounts, balances and open bets over automatically and, by all public accounts, smoothly. The product underneath was not reinvented — it's the same well-liked stack, wearing its old Ontario name.
Mid-pack by consensus: lines consistent with the market, rarely the best number, no reputation for heavy hold either. Reviewers' standing advice — use it in a rotation, not as a lone book — matches the 9.0 pricing score's spirit: fair, not sharp-leading.
Good domestic coverage with a smaller total menu than the majors and little international depth. The 'Move the Line' adjustable-line slider is a genuinely distinctive market feature reviewers keep singling out.
Quick and well-integrated with live scores and stats — the media-app DNA shows here more than anywhere. Depth in-play is adequate rather than deep.
The franchise's crown jewel: 4.8 on iOS across 200k+ ratings, praised for speed and for being the only product where a major media app and a sportsbook are one company. If app experience is your primary criterion, this is a top-three product.
Standard modern rails on both sides with no widespread complaints post-rebrand; the ESPN BET era drew scattered verification and withdrawal grumbles that haven't followed the new brand so far.
Aggressive and frequent — a PENN tradition that survived the rebrand. Offers tend to be genuinely usable, which is not nothing in 2026.
No structured loyalty program of note — a gap against the casino-anchored books, partly offset by the promo cadence.
Unremarkable in the current record — neither the horror stories of the biggest books nor any standout praise.
An 8.6 for the product; an asterisk for the passport. theScore Bet is a fast, likable, honestly-priced book with the best media integration in the market — and a brand that has now been Barstool, ESPN BET, and theScore Bet since 2021. PENN says this name is the keeper. The book is good enough that we hope that's true.
Use ESPN BET / theScore Bet if
Bettors who live inside theScore's scores-and-stats app and want betting one tap away; promo-responsive casual bettors; anyone who values a fast, clean interface over market-best pricing.
Look elsewhere if
Depth seekers — the menu trails the leaders, especially internationally — and price purists, since reviewers consistently describe the odds as solid but rarely market-leading.

Books
Priya Natarajan · Sep 17 · 6 min
21+ and present in a state where ESPN BET / theScore Bet operates. Gambling problem? Call or text 1-800-GAMBLER. This review contains affiliate links; our disclosure and methodology explain how commissions and ratings are kept apart.