New York lawmaker eyes expansion of fantasy sports games, leagues — with one catch

A New York lawmaker wants to expand fantasy sports games and update rules to keep pace with fan preferences and changes in the market.

“We can do so much better,” said state Sen. Joe Addabbo (D-Queens), chairman of the Racing, Gaming and Wagering Committee, who is pushing a new bill on the popular pastime.

Daily fantasy sports are competitions in which people battle each other online for prizes by building a team of professional athletes from a professional league.

Players earn points based on their chosen athletes’ on-field performance.

The industry’s status in New York was complicated by years of legal battles on whether it constituted gambling or skill.

The proposed law advanced by Addabbo would allow the state Gaming Commission to license a broader set up of operators to generate $150 million in new revenue over several years by charging a $5 million license fee to new operators and a renewal fee of 1% of gross revenues every five years.

But the one catch — the bill would also raise the age to play from 18 to 21.

The state Gaming Commission reports the following operators have temporary permits to offer fantasy sports games in New York: DraftKings, FanDuel, Yahoo, Fantasy Draft, RUMBL, Fanamana, Data Force, RealTime Fantasy Sports, For Players by Players, Vauntek, Sports Hub Technologies, MastersFantasyLeagues.com, Boom Fantasy, and Fulltime Fantasy Sports.

Popular Fantasy Prize Picks, Underdog, Sleeper, and Betr are the four big operators currently left out of the state’s fantasy sports law.

The bill seeks to correct the exclusion by expanding the State’s regulatory structures to include new fantasy operators and contests such as Pick’Em and peer-to-peer contests.

But state Conservative Party Chairman Gerard Kassar opposed the measure, saying the expansion contributes to compulsive-type gambling.

“We’re adding casinos. We have sports betting. Fantasy Sports have a potential to make things worse — it adds to compulsiveness,” Kassar said.

According to the Fantasy Sports & Gaming Association, 79% of fantasy participants play professional fantasy football, 32% basketball, 22% baseball, 12% hockey and 11% soccer.