Mark Shapiro Says In-Game Sports Betting Will Never Be A Growth Strategy For WWE

WWE currently has a partnership with Draft Kings, but the idea of betting on professional wrestling still has a lot of obstacles. And according to Endeavor COO Mark Shapiro, while other sports have been able to boost business through the 33 states that currently allow sports betting, he doesn't believe WWE will have the same avenues.

"More and more, it's about what you can do in-game," Shapiro explained on "Sports Media with Richard Deitsch" recently. "It is about props, it is about parlays, it is about in-game betting, which lends itself so well to sports like the UFC, but I don't think WWE — because it's scripted — that's ever going to be a growth strategy for them. Yes, you can get some betting on who's going to win before the match, but in-game is gonna be very hard to do."

Shapiro also compared the scripted nature of WWE to the Oscars, where auditors know who will win ahead of time but betting is still allowed, noting that only a few states allow that kind of betting. Shapiro believes that more regulation is coming for sports betting as a new generation of children are growing up with betting as part of their sports experience. "It's coming," Shapiro said, comparing sports betting to a truck barreling down the highway.

WWE has been attempting to enter the sports betting marketplace, but ultimately has struggled due to the previously mentioned scripted nature of the programming. Ideas like locking results in months in advance are seemingly not feasible with WWE's hectic production schedule.