Who Is The Actress In The ESPN BET Commercial & Why Does She Look So Familiar?

When the Supreme Court struck down a law prohibiting sports betting in 2018, a deluge of commercials followed in earnest. Now, there are more ads for sports betting apps than you can shake a stick at, with commercials for FanDuel, DraftKings, and BetMGM among the most ubiquitous. For many critics, these ads are nothing if not insidious, given the dangers of sports gambling. They also aren't going anywhere and have become as central to the fabric of sports television as ads for light beer and purveyors of chicken wings.

Considering this, perhaps it was inevitable that the country's largest sports network would cash in on the action. In 2023, ESPN launched ESPN BET, a sportsbook owned by parent company Disney.

ESPN is leveraging its star power to advertise the app, tapping talent like Scott Van Pelt and Elle Duncan. Duncan, a "SportsCenter" anchor, features prominently in the 30-second TV spot "You Had To Be There." The commercial takes place during a homecoming weekend for an unspecified college. As the alumni reminisce and joke, their classmate's bored wife stays entertained with the ESPN BET app. Duncan walks up and asks, "Are you betting against the home team at their own homecoming?" The women then gab about the team's shoddy defensive coverage over drinks, promising to act sad when they lose. For Duncan, a seasoned sports anchor, the ad is just another day at the office.

In some ways, ESPN BET's "You Had To Be There" is a culmination of Elle Duncan's career aspirations. The sports anchor initially set her sights on acting, moving from her native Atlanta to Los Angeles for pilot season out of high school. She eventually realized that she preferred to act like herself than play a character. "I'll admit, I didn't initially know that I wanted to fall into sports journalism, but what I did know was that I just wanted to be myself," Duncan told Ebony. "Broadcasting gave me the perfect avenue to do that ... I felt like, '[I'm] going to argue with people at the bar for free about these things anyway, so I might as well get paid for it.'"

Duncan began broadcasting in her hometown, covering teams like the Falcons and the Hawks before joining the New England Sports Network as a reporter and anchor in 2014. She became an anchor for ESPN in 2016 and as of 2021, hosts the network's 6 pm broadcast on weekdays alongside Kevin Negandhi. Duncan stays busy with auxiliary work, such as appearances on ESPN's "Around the Horn" and her latest venture, "The Elle Duncan Show," which airs biweekly.

Duncan has brought actorly flourishes to the sports desk, including an "Andor" tie-in skit. She clearly has a soft spot for on-camera antics; in 2014, she had a cameo as a reporter in the Kevin Hart and Ice Cube comedy, "Ride Along."