The Business Of Fantasy Sports: Terminology, Scandals & Legal Battles
2024 Business Of Fantasy Sports Series: Education & Politics | How It Started | Mainstream Explosion | CBC v MLBAM | UIGEA | The Rise Of DFS | The Fall Of DFS | The Repeal Of PASPA | Sports Betting Crossover | Fantasy Sports Feeds Sports Betting
Was the concept of “dream teams” created by a future President of the United States? Thomas Woodrow Wilson (Tommy) created them as a fourteen-year-old boy. His handwritten teams from 1871 are in the Library of Congress. Modern fantasy sports were created for golf, baseball and football in the 1950s and 1960s by a single Oakland area businessman, Wilfred “Bill” Winkenbach.
Fantasy sports is not new. However, with so many people confusing fantasy sports with sports betting, I decided to write a ten-part series to talk about the battles necessary to keep the hobby pure while allowing for innovation and growth over the last 30 years or so. As my colleagues and I fought for fantasy sports, it became clear the more we worked together, the more the pie grew.
Only when we battled was growth spurred, and innovation was run out of business. Yes, that is how American capitalism works. The fantasy sports industry always worked with “coopetition,” where everyone cooperated to make all boats rise with the tides. The last battle began in 2015, and division still exists today.
To provide further clarity, Better Sports Productions (Matt Deutsch) and I have produced a video series that delves into the terminology and history of the battles within the sports population, legislation and regulation. While it's understood that not everyone will agree with these definitions or our opinions, we've done our best to use historical context and the origins of these terms to define them.
Our main goal was to provide a clear understanding of the terminology used in fantasy sports and sports betting, while also examining the risks associated with single player prop bets. We also shed light on the critical laws and cases that have contributed to the confusion between fantasy sports and sports betting.
Fantasy Sports & Sports Betting Terminology
Pick 'Em Fantasy Sports vs. Single Player Props Bets
NBA vs. Motorola - 1997
CBC vs. MLBAM - 2005-2007
The Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act - October 2006
The Professional & Amateur Sports Protection Act Of 1992
Please tell me what you agree or disagree with on X @Rickwolf1 or on LinkedIn. Remember, change starts with a dialogue.
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