ESPN Opens Las Vegas Studio At The Linq

Caesars Entertainment and ESPN are debuting a new TV studio this week at The Linq Hotel + Experience in Las Vegas. Construction on the studio began shortly after ESPN and Caesars announced a partnership last year.

The major parts of the deal included the construction of the studio and the use of ESPN odds, lines and point spreads for all TV and online programming.

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The new studio for ESPN will produce content for SportsCenter and other programs on television and digital platforms. Beginning Sept. 8, ESPN’s sports betting news and information program, Daily Wager, will permanently move to Las Vegas and originate from the LINQ studio.

The show returns to ESPN2 at 3 p.m. PT on weekdays after a hiatus due to the pandemic.

Mike Morrison, VP of business development at ESPN, said the following about the new studio:

“In our ongoing mission to serve sports fans, we are committing to a bigger presence both in Las Vegas and with our content across platforms to authentically serve a fast-growing, highly engaged audience.”

The new ESPN studio is located in a prime center-strip location at The Linq. Some may remember this as the space that was once known as The Vortex.

The studio is across the street from Caesars’ most iconic property. Caesars Palace will be the backdrop for different camera angles at the new 6,000-square-foot ESPN facility which actually includes three studios.

We’re thrilled to announce the all-new, state-of-the-art @espn studio over-looking the #LasVegasStrip! Tune in Tues, Sept 8 for the first airing of ESPN’s #DailyWager LIVE and check it out yourself. 👏 #LINQlife

🎙️ https://t.co/9Vhzo1xvvq pic.twitter.com/QjY0BNtjEv

— The LINQ (@TheLINQ) August 24, 2020

Studio specifics

The new recording facility features 12 cameras. Two of those will be exterior robotic cameras.

These cameras leave little doubt that the Daily Wager crew will be giving sports betting advice while riding the FlyLinq zipline outside of the studio.

This will be ESPN’s first studio built to be fully capable to support native 4K. The studio will launch in 1080p quality. It will serve as the epicenter of ESPN’s sports betting-themed content for linear, digital and social shows.

ESPN says the studio will also play a vital role during major sporting events.

Connor Schell, executive vice president of content at ESPN, said:

“The appetite for sports betting content continues to grow among fans. Our new studio will not only operate as the headquarters for that content, but it will also anchor our year-round presence in Las Vegas – a city that has become a destination for the biggest events in sports.”

ESPN programming from Las Vegas

In addition to being home to Daily Wager, the ESPN studio will host various other shows. This fall, ESPN will expand its sports betting-themed content into multiple platforms with the launch of a new digital show.

New episodes will be available three days a week on the ESPN app, Facebook, Twitter and YouTube. This is all part of a new sports betting channel that will include content originating from Caesars.

In addition to Daily Wager, ESPN betting-related content has included:

• Stanford Steve and The Bear podcast (football season)
• Betting news, discussion segments in signature shows (SportsCenter)
• “Bad Beats” on SportsCenter with Scott Van Pelt
• Bettor Days with Mike Greenberg on ESPN+
• Gaming and gambling industry coverage on ESPN.com for more than 10 years

Schell says to expect even more ESPN content emanating from Las Vegas:

“The Linq studio allows us to meaningfully cover the lineup of major events on the horizon with our league partners like UFC and Top Rank, the NFL regular season with the Las Vegas Raiders – beginning with the Monday Night Football home opener on Sept. 21 – the Las Vegas Bowl, the NHL’s Vegas Golden Knights, NBA Summer League, and the rescheduled NFL Draft in 2022.”

Poor UNLV, not even a mention. Remember UNLV basketball?