This week: theScore founder reflects back on a $2B exit and what’s next

Also: Sweepmate has launched a UKGC-licensed prediction app (exclusive), the British Horseracing Authority CEO speaks to how it plans on innovating a heritage sport for the next generation, and more.

Author

Cody Luongo
November 20, 2025

theScore founder reflects on a $2B exit and what’s next 

The news: On The Gamble & The Glory podcast this week, theScore founder John Levy revisited the company-defining moment that changed everything: the 2012 sale of theScore’s linear TV network to Rogers, which paved the way for its transformation into one of North America’s leading digital sports brands. Levy admits the deal nearly went in a very different direction. “I thought at the end they were gonna say… we're gonna take the whole thing,” he said. “And then I don't know what I would've done.” Instead, Rogers bought the TV asset and left the digital business and brand untouched—an outcome that had Levy asking himself “how fricking lucky was that?” The pivot forced theScore to reimagine itself around mobile, data, and real-time engagement, ultimately leading to its $2B acquisition by PENN in 2021.

Zoom in: Levy described the internal shift not as abandoning media, but reinventing it for a new audience. “It wasn't really like media, bye-bye. It was new media… what does a young audience want to engage with?” he said. That meant recruiting engineers, rebuilding product DNA, and evolving the culture beyond broadcast roots. The journey was also shaped by the Levy family itself—Benjie, Aubrey, and Noah each entering the business at different moments and pushing theScore’s evolution across content, product, and betting. “If I told you it was always a piece of cake, I'd be lying for sure,” Levy said. But the friction, he insists, was productive. His advice to founders—born from decades of surviving pivots, setbacks, and near-misses: “You won't believe the lessons you're learning as you're getting your head slammed early… it might lead to something that you never anticipated would be there.”

Why it matters: Even after a generational exit, Levy’s connection to theScore—and the broader betting ecosystem—is far from over. He remains active across new B2B companies, microbetting ideas, and early-stage founders, and hasn’t ruled out a return. “I still have a love of the product I left,” he said, suggesting that if the right moment came, “I'll probably pick up the phone and see what happens.” For an industry still navigating product-market fit, media partnerships, and the post-PASPA reality, Levy’s story is a reminder that category leadership often hinges on well-timed reinvention—and the willingness to bet big when no one else believes the timing is right.

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British Horseracing Authority (BHA) has partnered with Flutter to find innovative companies that are ready to revolutionise the sport in Britain and engage the next generation of fans. 

The 'Future of Racing' summit takes place at York Racecourse in February 2026, and the most innovative tech startups will pitch their ideas to a panel of industry leaders and experts from Flutter, the BHA, racecourses and equine welfare. Apply if your solution aligns with one or more of our key themes:

  • Horse welfare

  • Education and simplification

  • Raceday experience 

  • Behind The Silks 

Applications are being accepted until November 23. Non-horse racing companies are encouraged to apply if their solutions fit the criteria. Learn more and apply here. 

EXCLUSIVE: Sweepmate launches real-money prediction app in the UK

The news: Sweepmate, a new UKGC-licensed real-money gaming app, has officially launched on iOS and Android with a format its founders call a “sweepstake with a twist,” the company shared exclusively with BettingStartups. Positioned to fill the gap left by DraftKings’ UK exit, Sweepmate blends elements of sweepstakes, fantasy sports, and trading into a weekly, pool-based prediction game built around Premier League fixtures. Players pick three teams each gameweek and earn payouts if their selections finish first, fourth, or last in Sweepmate’s custom scoring table—built using live Sportradar data and refreshed every week of the season.

Zoom in: Sweepmate’s core mechanic resets the Premier League table every week using a unique scoring model based on goal difference, goals scored, shots on and off target, and disciplinary stats. Players can also trade teams mid-Sprint through a mechanic called “Sweeping,” creating a live, market-driven layer of strategy that goes beyond what most fantasy or pick’em products typically offer. As co-founder Johnny Barnes put it, “Our goal is to create a product that keeps fans engaged right across the weekend, whether their favourite club is winning or not.”

Why it matters: Sweepmate is betting that the UK market is hungry for a real-money format that stays engaging across the entire weekend—not just for fans whose clubs win. Backed by a UKGC license and positioned explicitly as a pool-based game rather than a bookmaker, the founders say the aim is to create a more transparent, fan-first product. “Sweepmate is not a bookie as we don’t set odds or take a position,” Barnes said. With a structure that rewards scarcity, late-match drama, and real-time trading, the startup sees a path to expanding the format across more sports—and even non-sports events like Eurovision.

British Horseracing Authority CEO on innovating a heritage sport for the next generation

The news: British horse racing is confronting a critical question: how does a heritage sport stay relevant for the next generation? That’s the focus of Future of Racing, a new innovation program from the British Horseracing Authority (BHA) and Flutter Entertainment’s Alpha Hub. The initiative builds directly on Project Beacon—the sport’s most comprehensive audience study—which surveyed 7,500 people and identified a potential addressable market of 25M who are open to racing, two-thirds of whom currently have little or no engagement. BHA CEO Brant Dunshea tells BettingStartups, “there is a vast, untapped market for the sport with significant potential for growth,” alongside clear concerns around welfare, cost, and difficulty understanding the sport.

Zoom in: Future of Racing is structured around four core innovation themes—Horse Welfare, Education & Simplification, Race Day Experience, and Behind the Silks—each tied to barriers outlined in Project Beacon. Early traction is emerging in technologies that monitor equine welfare, simplify the racing experience through interactivity, enhance the social atmosphere of race days, and create emotional entry points through behind-the-scenes access to trainers, jockeys, and horses. For younger fans, roughly a quarter of whom say “only the big events are worth watching,” the need for clearer storytelling and season-long narratives is especially acute. For Dunshea, each theme is a part of the same puzzle: helping fans build confidence, connection, and year-round engagement with the sport.

Why it matters: For the BHA, innovation is about using data, digital products, and new ownership models to strengthen the emotional attachment that has always defined racing—all without trading away its heritage. Dunshea emphasized that racing must evolve how it tells its stories, deliver more real-time insights, and innovate across the fan journey—from welfare transparency to affordable ownership experiences through clubs and syndicates. Startups selected for the program will pitch live at York Racecourse on February 12, 2026, with winners gaining mentorship, pilot opportunities, and commercial pathways across the racing ecosystem.

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