08:09:00
SAN FRANCISCO — Even as legalized gambling has spread nationwide to include lotteries, casinos and just about every imaginable type of slot machine, the notion of betting on sports has remained, outside of Las Vegas, largely in the shadows.
But on Wednesday, Yahoo took the boldest step yet to bring what amounts to legalized betting on sports to the mainstream. The Silicon Valley company, which has been broadening its range of sports content, said it would host daily and one-week fantasy sports games played for money, starting with Major League Baseball and expanding to other professional sports as their seasons begin.
As any viewer of ESPN would know, the fantasy sports industry has been growing rapidly, with ubiquitous ads proclaiming that hundreds of thousands of dollars can be won on sites like DraftKings and FanDuel. But none of those companies, all start-ups, have the vast reach of Yahoo and the ability to entice tens of millions of young men — a coveted audience — to bet on the performance of their favorite players.
ahoo’s move further legitimizes a pastime that closely resembles gambling, particularly with the daily fantasy games. Players can bet against a single opponent or within a small group, and the quick results can simulate the adrenaline rush and financial stakes of traditional sports betting.
Fantasy sports operate under an exemption to the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act of 2006, which outlawed online poker and sports betting. Lobbyists from the National Football League, as well as from other professional leagues, successfully pushed to have fantasy sports deemed a “game of skill.” Most states permit the games, but the betting is illegal in five: Arizona, Montana, Louisiana, Iowa and Washington.
Ken Fuchs, Yahoo’s vice president for publisher products, said that fantasy sports were different from gambling because they relied on the skills of the player. Yahoo already runs cash leagues for fantasy sports that last the length of a season, and the daily games are no different.
“We stay very close to the laws,” Mr. Fuchs said. “We certainly encourage people to play responsibly.”
That would be interesting to see with competition like FanDuel, DraftKings or FantasySportsDaily.
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