Vince McMahon attends a press conference to announce that WWE Wrestlemania 29 will probably be held at MetLife Stadium in 2013 at MetLife Stadium on February 16, 2012 in East Rutherford, Recent Jersey.
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WWE is in talks with state gambling regulators in Colorado and Michigan to legalize betting on high-profile matches, in line with people acquainted with the matter.
WWE is working with the accounting firm EY to secure scripted match leads to hopes it can persuade regulators there is not any probability of results leaking to the general public, said the people, who asked to not be named since the discussions are private. Accounting firms PwC and EY, also often known as Ernst & Young, have historically worked with award shows, including the Academy Awards and the Emmys, to maintain 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 persuade regulators gambling on scripted matches is secure, the people said.
Still, while Academy Awards voting results are known by a select few before they’re announced publicly, they are not scripted by writers. Even when regulators allow gambling, betting firms would have to make your mind up in the event that they’re willing to put odds on WWE matches even when it’s legalized. Those discussions have yet to occur at betting firms, in line with people acquainted with the matter.
A WWE spokesperson declined to comment. A spokesperson for EY couldn’t immediately be reached for comment.
In accordance with a Michigan gaming spokesperson, the Michigan Gaming Control Board publishes a Sports Wagering Catalog. When updates to the catalog are approved, the data 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, resembling future character deaths in TV series.
Allowing gambling on certain WWE matches would alter how matches are produced – and the way 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, in line with people acquainted with the matter. The wrestlers themselves would not know whether or not they were winning or losing until shortly before a match takes place, said the people.
For instance, the WWE could lock the outcomes of Wrestlemania’s most important 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 happen between the top of the Royal Rumble and as much as days and even hours before Wrestlemania, when the wrestlers and others within the show’s production would learn the outcomes.
The introduction of legalized gambling could give WWE an increased appeal to a recent 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 12 months amid sexual misconduct allegations but returned to the WWE board in January as executive chairman to arrange the corporate for a sale process.
WWE is ready to satisfy with potential buyers for the corporate next month in preparation for first-round bids, two of the people said. There is not any assurance a transaction will happen.
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