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Around two months ago, the WWE announced its plans to legalize betting on scripted match results. Betting on pre-determined results is certainly unusual. In recent years, legalized betting sites have popped up in many states across the United States. Many more states are considering legalizing the activity of betting online. It is a massive opportunity for individual states' tax revenues and an excellent way for sports leagues to expand their reach.
The controversial WWE boss, Vince McMahon, wants to attract more fans and increase their footprint similarly. The only problem is that conventional sports are not scripted; everything is left up to chance. This poses several challenges for WWE's pursuit of legalized gambling, namely for regulators and sports betting sites.
The WWE has pitched a pair of state gambling regulators on their plan to take wagers on matches at WrestleMania and other major wrestling events. To bolster their attempt to legalize the activity, they have hired the world-renowned assurance and accounting firm Ernst & Young. EY's role is to secure match results, so they are not leaked to the public.
One of the key arguments from the WWE is the direct comparison with odds offered on the Oscars. For example, US bookmakers like DraftKings and FanDuel offer betting on categories such as Academy Award for Best Picture. In these cases, nominees are known in advance, and the category winner would also be known, although kept secret. However, many states, like Colorado, have regulations that prohibit betting on the Oscars and other similarly scripted events.
The idea is that select individuals know the match results months in advance, with wrestlers and other employees only learning about the outcome right before the match. In this case, betting would be allowed up until the point that the result is revealed.
According to JustGamblers, an authority on gambling in the US, it is likely that even if officials approve legalized betting on scripted match results, there’s no guarantee that individual bookmakers will show any interest. As with the example of the Oscars, far from every US bookmaker offers odds on the event due to scripted results.
Since the announcement from WWE, concerns have been raised about legalizing betting on scripted match results. The WWE is highly dynamic, with opinions and directions changing constantly. It is not uncommon that the creative team changes a narrative based on the audience's reaction to storylines. In that sense, planning the results of matches months in advance does not make sense.
With that in mind, if the WWE successfully legalize scripted matches, they risk losing a lot of fans.
Some critics also argue that this pursuit of legalized betting is a rouse. McMahon, the majority owner of WWE, is seeking a buyer. He is aiming for a sale price of $9 billion. Successful implementation of betting could improve the value of the franchise. Effectively, discussions about it could help McMahon secure a deal.
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