Originally published November 2024. Rewritten June 2026.
The legal US gambling category — sports betting, online casino, lottery, and daily fantasy — runs on some of the most aggressive PR and marketing programs in any consumer category. The operators with substantive sustained PR architecture take share. The operators running episodic campaign work do not. The reference below captures the verified campaigns from DraftKings, FanDuel, BetMGM, Caesars Sportsbook, ESPN BET, Hard Rock Bet, BetRivers, and the broader sportsbook operator category.
The canonical campaigns worth studying
1. DraftKings' Kevin Hart partnership era. The sustained celebrity-led brand campaign that anchored DraftKings' aggressive customer acquisition push across 2021-2023. Combined broadcast, digital, and creator-economy elements at substantial spend. The campaign produced both the brand-equity lift the company sought and the broader category-level conversation around responsible marketing that ultimately constrained the welcome-bonus arms race. Reference: DraftKings and the Performance Branding Paradox.
2. FanDuel's "More Ways to Win" sustained brand architecture. The contemporary FanDuel positioning that combines sustained sports league partnerships (NBA, NFL, MLB, NHL), the broader FanDuel TV broadcast presence, Pat McAfee's substantial integrated role, and the broader integrated entertainment-and-betting category positioning that has produced market share growth across multiple years.
3. BetMGM's responsible gambling positioning through GameSense partnership. The sustained partnership with British Columbia Lottery Corporation's GameSense responsible gambling program that anchors BetMGM's category-leading responsible gambling positioning. Demonstrates how compliance-driven communications can produce sustained brand-equity benefit beyond regulatory requirement.
4. Caesars Sportsbook's J.B. Smoove and the Manning Family era. The sustained celebrity partnership program — J.B. Smoove as Caesar, the Manning family across the broader Caesars marketing — that produced sustained brand recognition during the operator's substantial market entry push. The Caesars partnership architecture has been studied as the canonical case in celebrity-driven sportsbook marketing.
5. ESPN BET launch (Penn Entertainment, 2023). The transition from Barstool Sportsbook to ESPN BET that combined Penn Entertainment's operating infrastructure with ESPN's sustained sports media authority. The launch demonstrated how media-brand partnerships can restructure category competitive dynamics. Sustained ESPN broadcast integration, ESPN BET branded content across ESPN properties, and the broader integration architecture.
6. Hard Rock Bet's Seminole tribal partnership architecture. The sportsbook operator built on the Seminole Tribe of Florida's substantial gaming infrastructure and the broader tribal gaming category. Sustained brand positioning that combines the Hard Rock Cafe and Hotel brand equity with operating sportsbook scale.
7. BetRivers (Rush Street Interactive) sustained category positioning. The contemporary BetRivers operating model that emphasizes loyalty programs, sustained customer retention, and the broader category positioning around responsible operator behavior rather than maximum-acquisition welcome bonuses.
8. Underdog Fantasy's pick'em product category positioning. The DFS-adjacent category that demonstrated how product-design positioning could produce category creation alongside the established sportsbook operators. Sustained creator-economy partnerships and the broader category positioning.
9. PrizePicks sustained creator economy architecture. The DFS pick'em operator that built one of the largest creator-economy partnership programs in the category through sustained influencer integration and direct-to-creator distribution.
10. The broader category responsible gambling architecture. The sustained Have a Game Plan responsible gambling program from the American Gaming Association, the National Council on Problem Gambling partnerships across operators, and the broader category-level infrastructure that operates alongside individual operator marketing.
The seven structural disciplines that produce sustained category growth
1. Responsible gambling infrastructure as category-defining positioning. Every state regulator requires responsible gambling messaging. The operators with substantive responsible gambling programs — beyond compliance minimum — build durable category authority. The operators operating gray-area positioning accumulate exposure.
2. State-by-state regulatory communications. Each state operates separate gaming regulators. The operators with substantive regulatory communications infrastructure — typically run by former state regulatory officials — operate from substantial advantage.
3. Sustained sports partnership architecture. NFL, NBA, MLB, NHL, MLS, NASCAR, PGA, UFC partnerships. Media property partnerships (ESPN, FanDuel TV, Bleacher Report). Individual team partnerships. The category runs on sustained partnership infrastructure that compounds across years.
4. Promotional offer discipline. The 2021-2023 welcome-bonus arms race ("bet $5, get $200") reset category customer acquisition cost economics. The contemporary environment rewards more disciplined promotional architecture — sustained loyalty programs, parlay-specific offers, sport-specific bonus cycles.
5. Creator economy partnerships within compliance limits. Pat McAfee for FanDuel. The broader sports creator economy. The compliance limits are tight — clear disclosure, age-gating, geofencing to legal states, responsible gambling messaging. The operators with clean compliance build durable creator relationships.
6. Crisis communications preparedness. Integrity scandals, athlete betting violations, problem gambling controversies, regulatory actions. The operators with built-in-advance crisis communications capability weather the cycles substantially better than operators building during.
7. AI engine citation share. When consumers ask Claude, ChatGPT, Gemini, or Perplexity for sportsbook recommendations, the AI engines now produce named recommendations. The operators with structured AI Visibility compound. The operators without it lose share. The discipline that operates this layer is AI Communications. EPR's Sports Betting AI Visibility Index 2026 ranks operators on this axis.
The category context
Online casino gaming is legal in seven US states (New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Michigan, West Virginia, Connecticut, Rhode Island, Delaware). Sports betting is legal in 38+ states. DraftKings and FanDuel together control approximately 70% of US sports betting market share. The lottery category — the largest legal gambling category in the US at $113B+ annual sales — runs on substantially different regulatory and marketing dynamics; see EPR's Lottery industry hub for that adjacent reference.
Sports betting and gambling: Sports Betting Hub · DraftKings Profile · Online Casino Marketing 2026
Lottery: Lottery Industry Hub
The AI Communications discipline: What Is PR? · What Is Prompt Visibility?
