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Stephen A. Smith has cut ties with Papaya Gaming, the company behind the solitaire game he and other ESPN talents had promoted, Front Office Sports has learned.
Smith confirmed his exit to FOS, saying, “Papaya and I have mutually agreed to end our partnership.”
The ESPN superstar’s departure comes after the network recently ordered several other on-air talents to sever marketing ties with Papaya.
Smith isn’t the only loss recently suffered by Papaya. The company lost ground in its legal challenge from rival Skillz when a federal judge threw out Papaya’s counterclaims on Nov. 21. Both companies offer mobile games including solitaire.
Skillz Platform Inc. sued Papaya Gaming Ltd. last March, alleging it had unlawfully promoted its mobile games as “totally fair and skill-based” when they were instead “rigged.” The complaint alleged that between 2019 and “at least November 2023,” Papaya used bots “masquerading as human players” in games where human players had money on the line, making it unfairly difficult for users to succeed.
Skillz v. Papaya
Papaya lodged counterclaims for false advertising and deceptive practices—claiming Skillz inaccurately described its own games in ways that caused harm to Papaya. Specifically, Papaya alleged that statements posted on the Skillz website about matching players of equal skill, a total absence of bots, and the speed of cash withdrawals, created the false impression that its games are more fair and reliable than those of competitors, including Papaya.
But a federal judge dismissed the counterclaims Nov. 21, writing in an opinion that “Papaya has not proffered sufficient evidence to support a claim that it suffered a loss of sales or was otherwise injured as a result of Skillz’s statements about Skillz’s own games.”
A Papaya spokesperson said in an emailed statement that the company “strongly disagrees with the court’s ruling.”
“Papaya will continue to vigorously defend itself and contest Skillz’s false and unjustified accusations,” the statement said. “In the meantime, Papaya will continue to lead the industry through innovation while remaining focused on our mission to provide players with fair, skill‑based competition.”
The case remains ongoing, and the judge has ordered the parties to try mediating their dispute either this month or next. No mediation date has been set yet, according to a spokesperson for Skillz.
“We are pleased that the Court has granted Skillz’s Motion for Summary Judgment and rejected Papaya’s counterclaims,” the Skillz spokesperson said in a statement to FOS.
“This case has always been about getting the deceptive use of bots out of the real-money, skill-based gaming space, and we look forward to presenting our claims against Papaya to a jury,” the statement said.
‘Deceptive’ Practices
Papaya contends that Skillz also uses bots, despite presenting itself as the only trustworthy player in the industry. The spokesperson’s statement said “the ruling turned a blind eye to the well‑documented evidence of Skillz’s deceitful practices, and focused solely on finding insufficient evidence of damages to Papaya.”
“A whistleblower (a former senior Skillz employee) confirms Skillz’s own deceptive matchmaking practices—Skillz has deceived, and continues to deceive, its players and investors by using bots, manipulating matchmaking, and delaying withdrawals,” it said.
The suit drew attention after Smith signed on with Papaya to promote its solitaire game, a partnership that poked fun at the broadcaster’s viral moment five months earlier, when he was spotted playing solitaire on his phone at Game 4 of the NBA Finals. As part of the endorsement deal, Smith was named “official ambassador” to Papaya’s World Solitaire Championship in Miami in February.
This fall, Smith began touting Papaya’s solitaire game on his social media feed. Taking their cue from Smith, ESPN’s Mina Kimes, Dan Orlovsky, Laura Rutledge, and Kendrick Perkins also promoted the #BeatStephenChallenge online. But once negative headlines started coming out about the lawsuit, Kimes had a change of heart, publicly apologizing for her involvement.
“The truth is: I didn’t spend any time looking into the whole thing, and that’s 100% on me,” wrote Kimes on X/Twitter. “Thought it was just typical marketing work, and I’m deeply embarrassed I didn’t vet it. A colossal fuck-up on my part.”
Kimes’s public disavowal opened the floodgates. ESPN brass in Bristol, Conn., had not been briefed on, or approved, the marketing campaign, sources tell FOS.
ESPN ordered Kimes, Orlovsky, Rutledge, and Perkins to cut ties with Papaya while letting Smith, its biggest star, make his own decision on his own time.
