Could Recent Rifts in Fantasy Sports Affect Sports Gambling?

Fantasy Sports was given a special exemption from the Department of Justice under the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act of 2006 (UIGEA). This appeared to be a victory for the approval of online sports gambling in the future. It was thought that nothing could go wrong when two or more individuals from different sections of the country have a face-off with fantasy teams for a collective prize fund.

The DraftKings Employees Issue

Over the previous week or so, information has come to light that employees who work for the nation’s top fantasy sports website, DraftKings, have been found to be playing and winning large amounts of money at DraftKings’ most prominent competitor, FanDuel. What has emerged is that DraftKings employees were also allegedly making use of data derived from the database at DraftKings, leading them to make player suggestions that resulted in victories in multi-player and head-to-head contests. Although making use of the data may not be illegal due to a lack of regulations that govern how the sites work, it does appear to infringe on the ethics of contestants competing within a level playing field. Currently, it is the lack of regulation that has allowed the gaming niche to grow at such an amazing rate. Fantasy Sports sites currently are generating about $2.6 billion in entry fees, and this is expected to rise to over $14 billion in the next five years. As an aside, none of the employees from the site have been found to be competing on their own sites.

How Does This Affect the Future of Online Sports Wagering

Proponents and opponents of online sports gambling within the USA have had their goals fixated on the fantasy sports industry. A high level of success and a low level of issues could turn out to be all it will take to convince US lawmakers that the country might be ready to handle sports gambling without sacrificing the ethics and integrity of the sports that are involved. Currently, sports gambling is the only means of betting that is illegal across all of the 50 states. There is no mistaking that the new information involving Fantasy Sports sites is a major blow to any prospect of getting sports gambling accepted legally in this country. Any signs that there is impropriety are sufficient to shut down any discussions before they begin. You can bet that the casino lobbyists will be thrilled by the new revelations. This is exactly what all the warnings from the lobbyists have been about. When one looks at it, it is proving to be highly difficult to police the Internet, especially if the gaming sites are not willing to police themselves.

Long-Term Prognosis

After the current revelations with regards to Fantasy Sports, it is going to open the doors for many more talks about these regulations. Whenever an industry is subjected to newer levels of disclosure regarding fraud prevention, it will change the way the industry will be able to market and offer their product. At the very least, Fantasy Sports players will be starting to demand transparency on the Fantasy Sports sites. The players need assurances that the data on the sites will not be used for providing anyone with an unfair advantage. When the special exclusion was granted to operators, it was assumed that playing Fantasy sports would be a game of skill and all of the participants would be operating on a level playing field. Obviously, it’s not the case at this time. Opponents of any form of gambling on any level have often looked at gambling as the devil’s workshop. They are at all times on the lookout for that so-called “AHA” moment, and this is one of the moments that has happened. It is becoming very clear that providers do a better job and make sure that abuses are eliminated.