Washington Redskins’ Pierre Garcon Files Class-Action Lawsuit Against FanDuel

FanDuel said in a statement that it believes the lawsuit was without merit.

Pierre Garcon has directed his lawyers to file a class action lawsuit against FanDuel on behalf of all NFL Players.

“That same employee won $350,000 in a contest on the FanDuel site, reports theDaily Fantasy Sports site, which is using the scandal as a spur to call for regulationof the billion-dollar fantasy sports industry”.

Lawyers for Garcon argue that FanDuel “owes its success operating these daily fantasy football contests to NFL players … whose names and likenesses make FanDuel’s games possible”. Sports Illustrated also has a partnership with DailyMVP, another daily fantasy sports provider.

FanDuel does not have a licensing agreement with the NFL Players Assn. like competitor DraftKings.

Representatives for the NFL Players Association, DraftKings and Yahoo weren’t immediately available for comment.

The case is Garcon v. FanDuel Inc., 15-cv-03324.

Two law firms, Murray Murphy Moul + Basil and Bailey Glasser, announced the class action suit has been filed with the United States District Court for the District of Maryland. FanDuel spent more than $16 million on advertising during the first week of October, the lawsuit said. And both are the subject of Department of Justice and FBI investigations into their business practices, according to the Wall Street Journal.

Garcon’s lawsuit only names FanDuel as a defendant, a move that reflects a licensing agreement signed by the NFLPA (of which Garcon is a member) and DraftKings in September. Numerous most common advertisements employ the use of players’ names and likenesses, forming the foundation of Garcon’s grievance. The lawsuit claims include deprivation of publicity rights, false endorsement and unjust enrichment. However, FanDuel maintained these deals with a small group of National Football League players and also pursued deals with individual National Football League teams.

Michael McCann is a Massachusetts attorney and the founding director of the Sports and Entertainment Law Institute at the University of New Hampshire School of Law.