Vince McMahon attends a press conference to announce that WWE Wrestlemania 29 will be held at MetLife Stadium in 2013 at MetLife Stadium on February 16, 2012 in East Rutherford, New Jersey.
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WWE is in talks with state gambling regulators in Colorado and Michigan to legalize betting on high-profile matches, according to people familiar with the matter.
WWE is working with the accounting firm EY to secure scripted match results in hopes it will convince regulators there’s no chance of results leaking to the public, said the people, who asked not to be named because the discussions are private. Accounting firms PwC and EY, also known as Ernst & Young, have historically worked with award shows, including the Academy Awards and the Emmys, to keep 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 convince regulators gambling on scripted matches is safe, the people said.
Still, while Academy Awards voting results are known by a select few before they’re announced publicly, they aren’t scripted by writers. Even if regulators allow gambling, betting companies would have to decide if they’re willing to place odds on WWE matches even if it’s legalized. Those discussions have yet to occur at betting firms, according to people familiar with the matter.
A WWE spokesperson declined to comment. A spokesperson for EY couldn’t immediately be reached for comment. Gambling regulators in Michigan and Colorado didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.
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, such as future character deaths in TV series.
Allowing gambling on certain WWE matches would alter how matches are produced –…
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