ESPN to broadcast live XFL betting lines
Returning football league franchise will allow announcers to discuss wagers during broadcasts
ESPN and ABC will feature integrated odds during their broadcasts of the return of the XFL football league.
The networks’ ‘score bug’ will feature both the betting point spread and over/under provided by Caesars, alongside traditional graphics such as the score and game clock.
ABC and ESPN will also afford announcers the opportunity to discuss bets during broadcasts.
The XFL, which is owned by Vince McMahon’s Alpha Entertainment, is prepared to share its raw data with betting operators, while the NFL has yet to embrace the vertical so openly.
The NFL forbids announcers from discussing wagers during game coverage.
Lee Fitting, SVP of production at ESPN, said: “The over/under and point spread will be incorporated in our on-screen dashboard for XFL games. When it’s appropriate, our announcers will also have conversations around the spread and over-under.
“We want to serve the viewer with this information when it feels right,” he added.
Examples of this could be a late-scoring touchdown or a pre-match preview discussion, according to the network.
So far, six states have authorised legal wagers on the new XFL season: Indiana, Iowa, Nevada, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Rhode Island.
The eight-team XFL will run for 12 weeks during the NFL off-season, starting on 8 February 2020.
The league previously ran for a solitary season back in 2001.
Last month, XFL established a multi-year integrity partnership with Genius Sports.