DraftKings, among the leading companies offering legal sports betting in the U.S., apologized for offering a 9/11-themed bet that would pay off if three New York sports teams won Monday, the 22nd anniversary of the terrorist attacks on Sept. 11, 2001.
The Boston-based company began offering the "Never Forget" bet – playing off a term frequently applied to the terrorist attacks – on Sunday night. The odds were +651 – meaning a bettor who wagers $100 would earn $651 if the Yankees and Mets of Major League Baseball and the NFL's Jets won Monday. Several posts on X showed screenshots of the bet offered by DraftKings followed by negative comments. As of late Monday morning, the bet was no longer available.
"We sincerely apologize for the featured parlay that was shared briefly in commemoration of 9/11," the company said in a statement posted on X. "We respect the significance of this day for our country and especially for the families of those who were directly affected."
The Mets played Monday night at Citi Field in New York, where most of the deaths on 9/11 occurred. The Yankees' game at Boston was postponed by rain, and the Jets played host to Buffalo at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey, about 13 miles north of Newark International Airport, where United Airlines Flight 93 that crashed into a Shanksville, Pa., field departed.
Brett Eagleson, whose father, Bruce, was killed inside one of the World Trade Center towers, runs a family and first responders organization called 9/11 Justice. He told The Associated Press on Monday the DraftKings offer was "tone-deaf."
"It is shameful to use the national tragedy of 9/11 to promote a business," he said. "We need accountability, justice and closure, not self-interest and shameless promotion."
Michael Katz ✉
Michael Katz is a Newsmax reporter with more than 30 years of experience reporting and editing on news, culture, and politics.
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