By Jordan Zucker ’16, Staff Writer

Fantasy football has exploded in popularity since the dawn of the internet, when CBS created the first version of a free fantasy football website in 1997.  Fantasy football is a “competition in which participants build their own imaginary teams by drafting players from a pool, and score points according to the performance of their players.”  A Forbes article in 2013 estimated that the fantasy industry was worth anywhere from “$40 billion to over $70 billion per year in tangible and intangible activity.”  Many students from Newark Academy have their own fantasy football leagues, with friends competing amongst themselves.  Zach Lathrop ‘16, says he loves it because “it allows (him) to compete against my friends in a fun way,” and adds that “the buy in at the beginning of the year can result in the winning of a decent sum of money.”  Today, fantasy football is more popular than ever with the rise of “one-day Fantasy Sports Leagues” websites like DraftKings and FanDuel.  Responsible for the majority of fantasy sports betting online today, these two websites require an initial “buy in” from each player in the league.  The buy-in’s start from $1 in smaller payout leagues, and only go higher depending on the kind of prize the league is offering.  Once you have entered a league, you are then given a hard salary cap of which you can divide up to pay for players.  Players who are more talented command higher prices, and the cost of each player vary week-to-week depending on their previous performance.  Season-long fantasy leagues like Yahoo, ESPN, and CBS do not require a buy-in, however some do have them, and a team is created by a draft, not by the purchasing of players.  While these free leagues tend to be much more popular than paid leagues, the market for one-day fantasy leagues is growing at a swift pace.  According to another Forbes article published earlier this fall, it is estimated that, “daily games will generate around $2.6 billion in entry fees this year and grow 41% annually, reaching $14.4 billion in 2020.”  An issue commonly brought up by participants is the gambling status that virtual sports leagues have.  Since Fantasy sports are technically considered a “skill-based game,” they are not considered gambling, and largely slip past most of the anti-gambling laws established by Federal Law.  This loophole of being classified as a skill-based game has allowed fantasy football to grow at a fast pace, and with this growth, there has also been an incredible influence on viewership rates for weekly games.

Fantasy football has had an undeniably massive impact on viewership in the NFL in the past few years.  According to the NFL, a Harris Poll conducted in October 2012 found that over 59% of Americans followed the NFL, a sharp increase from 47% of respondents in 2002.  The increase in viewership can most likely be explained by a larger marketing campaign designed by the NFL in recent years, but fantasy sports have also certainly contributed.  While fantasy football has existed for a while, companies like FanDuel and DraftKings have given fantasy a new energy, spending over $300 million dollars in advertising, according to an article by CNN.  It is estimated that between them, “they have sponsorship deals with 28 of the 32 NFL teams, worth an estimated $6 million to $7 million to the teams.”  These sponsorship deals are most visible in NFL stadiums, where fantasy advertisements are displayed on Jumbotrons; at MetLife stadium, league leaders are displayed not by their individual stats, but by their overall fantasy points.  Fantasy football has affected viewership as fantasy owners are more acutely aware of their individual players’ performances, which directly correlate with potential prize money.  Jonathan Holtzman ’16 agrees with Zach’s point and argues it is “essentially low-risk gambling,” which is even more enjoyable because “[he] get[s] to do an activity with my friends.”  Jonathan, a member of the growing audience of NFL fans drawn from fantasy football argues, “[fantasy football] gives me a good reason to actually watch the games and be involved.”  Arguably, however, the greatest effects of fantasy football can be seen in the realm of television.  NFL RedZone, created by the NFL Network, is a channel that focuses exclusively on around the league highlights, and real-time fantasy scoring.  Advertisements for the service include the ability to have an owner’s fantasy team listed on the right side of the television screen, with live scoring updates.  Fantasy’s impact can also be seen in a more prominent way through advertising on channels like ESPN, Fox Sports, CBS, and NBC.

While fantasy football has been the most successful of all virtual sports, there is an emerging market for basketball and baseball.  While basketball and baseball fantasy leagues are not nearly as well known as the football ones, many people shift to different sports depending on the time of year.  For example, the MLB regular season goes through the Spring, Summer, and Fall, with the World Series occurring in late October, and many are drawn in by this.  According to Gregg Rosenthal, fantasy sports editor of Rotoworld, “6 to 7 million people play fantasy baseball each year.” The expansion of fantasy sports isn’t just relegated to live games or football. A show on FX called “The League” is an American sitcom focused exclusively on members of a fantasy football league, and follows their everyday lives.  Taking television by storm, “The League” carries an 8.3 rating on IMDb and is definitely worth a watch if you’re a sports fan.  Fantasy sports continue to explode and there is no reason to expect anything to change.