theScore Bet has secured another Canadian sports sponsorship deal, this time with the Canadian Football League (CFL).
The sportsbook and casino recently signed a deal with the CFL to present the league’s all-new CFL Fantasy game, a free-to-play offering that allows fans to draft rosters of CFL stars and compete in season-long contests in public or private leagues.
theScore Bet will also be the presenting sponsor of the CFL App, which will launch later this year with cross-branding, custom promotions and, notably, a betting odds integration that allows users of the CFL app (as well as theScore media app) to view and engage with the operator’s CFL betting markets and odds.
CFL deal gives theScore Bet more Alberta penetration
The CFL noted in a press release that its partnership with theScore Bet will face not only Ontario, where the historical Canadian sports brand has offered online sports betting and casino for four years, but also Alberta.
Alberta is due to become the second province to launch commercial regulated iGaming on July 13 and theScore’s American parent company, PENN Entertainment, has high hopes for the province.
“We feel really good about our launch there,” said PENN Chief Technology Officer Aaron LaBerge on a company earnings call in late April, shortly after theScore Bet was approved for an operator’s license in Alberta.
“Obviously, theScore brand in Canada is very strong. It’s the number one media sports brand in market … We enjoy a very nice market share in Ontario today. It’s a big part of our gaming business, and we expect to see similar market share [in Alberta] based on the investments we’re going to make.”
Alberta has a fervent CFL fandom and is one of just two provinces (along with Ontario) that have more than one team in the league: the Calgary Stampeders and the Edmonton Elks.
theScore adds to Canadian sports partners
The CFL adds to theScore Bet’s list of sports partners in Canada.
Most notably, the operator has a 10-year exclusive deal with the Toronto Blue Jays that has yielded broadcast visibility, signage at Toronto’s Rogers Centre, and exclusive games such as Blue Jays Blackjack on theScore Bet and theScore Casino apps.
theScore Bet also has a commercial agreement with Golf Canada that makes it the organization’s exclusive official gaming partner. The partnership includes sponsorship of Canada’s marquee national golf championships, the RBC Canadian Open and CPKC Women’s Open.
CFL also renews with FanDuel
Meanwhile, the CFL has also extended its existing collaboration with FanDuel Canada, a partnership that first began back in 2023. The league has also enlisted other Canadian sports betting partners, including Soft2Bet’s ToonieBet brand.
Last month, sports streaming giant DAZN announced that it will become the exclusive Canadian broadcaster of CFL Saturday Night Football games starting in 2027, and will stream every CFL game in its worldwide markets outside North America.
Incidentally, DAZN Bet, the company’s online sports betting arm, has been approved to launch iGaming in both Ontario and Alberta.
