ESPN Digital Chief Ryan Spoon Exits For COO Post At Sports Betting Venture BetMGM
Ryan Spoon has left his post as Senior Vice President of Social & Digital Content at ESPN to take the COO position at BetMGM, a sports betting joint venture between MGM Resorts International and GVC Holdings
At ESPN, Spoon had also headed up Digital Product and Design, helping build, operate and grow many of the leading digital properties in sports including ESPN.com, the ESPN App, ESPN Fantasy, including ESPN Fantasy Football, and ESPN Social.
Spoon is a two-time Sports Business Journal Forty Under 40 winner. Before joining ESPN, Spoon spent time as a venture capitalist at Polaris Venture Partners, identifying and leveraging trends in the digital space.
Spoon will report to BetMGM’s CEO Adam Greenblatt.
“BetMGM has seen early success in establishing itself as a significant player in the sports betting world through relationships with leagues, teams and partners. With Ryan’s expertise in developing scaled and engaging digital experiences, BetMGM will leverage those relationships in entirely new ways, Greenblatt said.
BetMGM’s platform provides a user-friendly sports betting experience, making it simple to customize pre-game, live in-play, futures and parlay bets. Sports bettors can select from a wide assortment of betting options including football, basketball, baseball, hockey, golf, soccer, tennis and combat sports. The app is currently live in six states with the goal of rapid expansion as state legislation allows. Its league partnerships include the NBA, MLB, NHL, MLS, PGA TOUR and NASCAR. Team partners include the Denver Broncos, New York Jets, Tennessee Titans, Detroit Lions, Las Vegas Raiders, Vegas Golden Knights, and more. Strategic partners include Yahoo! Sports and Buffalo Wild Wings.
Spoon said, “The opportunity at BetMGM during these early phases was an immediate draw for me. With the incredible assets of MGM Resorts, GVC’s industry-leading technology, and the many league, team and platform partners, BetMGM is uniquely positioned in the market and I am excited to help drive future growth.”
Spoon will be based in the BetMGM headquarters in New Jersey and is scheduled to start in his new role in November.
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