Indiana is losing one of its online sportsbook options this week. As of July 1, theScore Bet is closing down its operations in the US.
The company will be focusing on Canadian gambling in the future.
If you have an account with the Indiana betting app, then you can still withdraw your money before this Friday. If you miss the deadline, then the company will mail a check with your balance to the address attached to your account.
TheScore Bet shutting down
TheScore Bet closing is more of a change in business strategy than anything else.
Penn National Gaming purchased theScore less than a year ago. The company also owns a 36% stake in Barstool Sports, with the option to acquire more of the company in the future.
Both media brands have their own betting apps, but Barstool Sportsbook is vastly more popular than theScore Bet in Indiana.
Take May 2022, when Hoosiers wagered over $300 million on sports, as an example.
During that month, Barstool took in over $10 million worth of wagers. TheScore Bet lagged behind with a mere $600,000.
That trend has become commonplace around the US in states that have both sportsbooks. Barstool holds its own while theScore struggles to find gamblers.
The popularity difference likely made shutting down theScore an easy choice for Penn National. With all of its sports betting eggs in one basket, the company should be able to divide up its resources more appropriately.
Searching for gambling gimmicks
The world of online sports betting is a very competitive one.
Gambling companies handle billions of dollars worth of sports wagers every year in the US. Carving out your own piece of that pie is becoming increasingly difficult.
That competition leads to sportsbooks like theScore Bet looking to get creative.
TheScore operates one of the largest sports media apps in the country. Its hope was to translate those users into gamblers, but that plan never worked out for the company.
The idea was based on convenience. If you were already using theScore’s media app, then the sportsbook side of the company could use that data to offer you odds and promotions on the sports and teams that you’re the most interested in.
That two-for-one approach never caught on in Indiana, which could be an ill omen for other gambling companies looking to try their own gimmicks in the state.
If it ends up launching in Indiana, Fubo Sportsbook could be in a similar situation. The sportsbook is already open for business in Iowa and Arizona, but the company still isn’t taking wagers in the Hoosier State yet.
Much like theScore, Fubo is also aiming for an integrated media and betting experience. However, Fubo’s gambling plans are focused on paring its sportsbook app with its television product, rather than with a traditional media app.
If theScore’s performance is indicative of how gamblers feel about media-sportsbook fusions, then Fubo might be in trouble.
TwinSpires Sportsbook was the first betting app to stop taking Indiana wagers. Now, theScore Bet is joining it in the gambling graveyard.
At the very least, theScore Bet’s shutdown helps signal a new stage of Indiana’s sports betting market. Betting apps closing their doors shows just how hard it can be to compete with the top performers over the long term.