WWE in talks over legalized betting on scripted match results
S E E D E D C O N T E N T
Published Wed, Mar 8 20233:45 PM ESTUpdated Moments Ago WATCH LIVE Key Points
- WWE has held discussions with state gambling regulators in Colorado and Michigan to legalize betting on scripted match results, sources said.
- WWE is working with EY, commonly known as Ernst & Young, to secure match results so they won't leak to the public.
- WWE creative executives don't plan to inform wrestlers who will win until hours before a match.
- WWE aims to have major sports betting companies offer bets on high-profile matches.
WWE is in talks with state gambling regulators in Colorado and Michigan to legalize betting on high-profile matches, according to people familiar with the matter.
WWE is working with the accounting firm EY to secure scripted match results in hopes it will convince regulators there's no chance of results leaking to the public, said the people, who asked not to be named because the discussions are private. Accounting firms PwC and EY, also known as Ernst & Young, have historically worked with award shows, including the Academy Awards and the Emmys, to keep results a secret.
Betting on the Academy Awards is already legal and available through some sports betting applications, including market leaders FanDuel and DraftKings, although most states don't allow it. WWE executives have cited Oscars betting as a template to convince regulators gambling on scripted matches is safe, the people said.
Still, while Academy Awards voting results are known by a select few before they're announced publicly, they aren't scripted by writers. Even if regulators allow gambling, betting companies would have to decide if they're willing to place odds on WWE matches even if it's legalized. Those discussions have yet to occur at betting firms, according to people familiar with the matter.
A WWE spokesperson declined to comment. A spokesperson for EY couldn't immediately be reached for comment.
According to a Michigan gaming spokesperson, the Michigan Gaming Control Board publishes a Sports Wagering Catalog. When updates to the catalog are approved, the information is shared publicly through the agency's website and with sportsbook operators.
The Colorado Division of Gaming told CNBC it has not currently and has not considered allowing sports betting wagers on WWE matches.
Under lock and key
If WWE succeeds in its bid to legalize gambling on matches, it could open the door for legalized betting on other guarded, secret scripted events, such as future character deaths in TV series.
Allowing gambling on certain WWE matches would alter how matches are produced - and how storylines are created. In discussions about how gambling on wrestling could work, WWE executives have proposed that scripted results of matches be locked in months ahead of time, according to people familiar with the matter. The wrestlers themselves wouldn't know whether they were winning or losing until shortly before a match takes place, said the people.
For example, the WWE could lock the results of Wrestlemania's main event months ahead of time, based on a scripted storyline that hinged to the winner of January's Royal Rumble. Betting on the match could then take place between the end of the Royal Rumble and up to days or even hours before Wrestlemania, when the wrestlers and others in the show's production would learn the results.
The introduction of legalized gambling could give WWE an increased appeal to a new set of fans while significantly altering creative storylines. Paul Levesque, whose wrestling name is Triple H, took over as head of WWE's creative operations from Vince McMahon in July. McMahon stepped down as WWE chairman and CEO last year amid sexual misconduct allegations but returned to the WWE board in January as executive chairman to prepare the company for a sale process.
WWE is set to meet with potential buyers for the company next month in preparation for first-round bids, two of the people said. There's no assurance a transaction will take place.
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Well..... they do say people will bet on anything.
Betting on a fake sporting event - what could go wrong?
That will make the scripts more valuable.
That was my first thought.
But when you think about it, why not? A fool and his money are lucky enough to get together in the first place. Let 'em waste it how they want.
They have better odds with this than they do in Vegas.
And America's moral decay continues. I see some 'insider knowledge' becoming an event in itself here. Holy Crackers!!!!!!!!!!!!!
WWE. We're Weird Everything.
Dumb and Dumber?
Asked Andre once what he considered the future of Pro (fake) wrestling to be.
He grinned at me and said "more money"!
It's becoming a contest, isn't it?
I thought all professional wrestling was fake.
Took part in both a "Lost" and "Walking Dead" betting pool on who would die in what Episode # during the season. All bets were made at the start of each season. It was a ten dollar per person wager with the winner taking all. Getting the correct person was worth points- as well as the correct episode.
You don't need Casinos or any type of established gambling system if you really want to bet on something.
Finally - something dumber than “professional” wrestling: betting on professional wrestling.
Wrestling is one of my guilty pleasures. My uncle took me to see my first live match when I was 6.
I've been to a WWE event. We went because we thought Hulk Hogan would be there (my son was crazy about him at the time). The weather started getting bad so we left.
I miss the roller derby! I think the outcome was fixed there also.
There are a lot of local roller derby clubs and they are not fake, but it's still super fun to watch.
I have a young friend who used to skate with a Derby club here in our home town. She tried to get me to join but I declined knowing I would get hurt ....badly
The late, great Jim Croce.
Roller Derby Queen. 5' 2'' 215 my Hackensack mama with a streak of mean, she is built like a refrigerator with a head.
I love that song. That was my son's favorite when he was little
I spent a little bit of time with a local women's team several years ago, but had to have surgery for something unrelated. I was training to be a zebra. One of the guys wanted me to join a men's team, but that would have required driving a couple of hours once a week and I didn't really want to. My skating skills sucked.
What's a zebra?
referee
Well... when... after two weeks of significantly dubious officiating... the Super Bowl is won in State Farm Stadium by State Farm's two most prominent spokespeople who then appear on the State Farm Post Game Show... I'm not sure betting on WWE represents a significant departure.
Hey, how about those Cowboys.