DraftKings, FanDuel to challenge NY decision

The country’s two largest daily fantasy sports operators, DraftKings Inc. and FanDuel Inc., are barreling toward a showdown with New York’s top law enforcement official, refusing for now his order that their contests be closed to state residents because he says the games amount to illegal gambling. When this law was passed, daily fantasy was nonexistent.

“Because of the daily nature of daily fantasy sports, I think there are sufficient questions to allow the attorney general to reach the conclusion that it’s purely a game a chance”, said McLaughlin, now a partner with the Hodgson Russ law firm.

The NBA, MLB, NFL and NHL all operate out of Manhattan. If legislators or the courts settle that debate, and the final call goes against DraftKings and FanDuel, it could mean a knockout punch for their businesses.

The gray area has now officially hit the fan for fantasy sports megabrands DraftKings and FanDuel. Gibson Dunn has a team of former federal prosecutors to oversee the various inquiries and investigations. Robert Menendez and Rep. Frank Pallone have requested that the Federal Trade Commission become involved.

People with knowledge of the Vantiv letter told the Globe that both DraftKings and FanDuel received the request, but said the vendor later relented and agreed to continue processing payments after talks with the companies. DraftKings and FanDuel have advertised heavily on the Internet and TV ahead of and during the 2015 National Football League season. New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft and Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones are both big investors in DraftKings. I have never played nor will ever play them, whether it’s daily or seasonal fantasy sports. Cash prizes for a few contests can reach $1 million, and the industry is projected to collect almost $4 billion in revenues this year.

The latest news in the arrest of two nephews of the powerful first lady of Venezuela Cilia Flores on US drug charges.

Industry executives say that daily fantasy ad spending will drop significantly once football is over this winter, because while there are daily fantasy offerings for other sports, daily fantasy is really about football, football, football. “If DraftKings and FanDuel had simply grown in a quieter, more organic way, they would have been much less scrutinized”, Katz said.

What professional sports owners and managers know is that when sports fans also have a DFS interest in a game, they are more likely to watch the game. “But we think the law is very clear”. “Contact the attorney general today!”

Other leagues, too, appear uncertain on how to navigate the cloudy daily fantasy waters. “Let people play, who cares”, announced this week his state wouldn’t weigh-in on DFS until New Jersey’s lawsuit regarding its wishes to legalize sports betting reaches a verdict sometime in 2016.

Cease-and-desist letters sent to both organizations suggest that “each … wager represents a wager on a “contest of chance” where winning or losing depends on numerous elements of chance to a ‘material degree'”.

On Tuesday, an MLB spokesman said the league had not reviewed Schneiderman’s letter. “It just came out yesterday. We got comfortable with the idea that those games were on the right side of the line of what the federal law is now”. “But at this point we’re still studying it”.

For the record, I HATE all fantasy sports. “We expect the industry to respond appropriately to the issues that have been raised and continue to comply with all applicable laws”.