A Short Treatise on Fantasy Sports and the Law: How America Regulates its New National Pastime
Harvard Journal of Sports & Entertainment Law, Vol. 3, January 2012
53 Pages Posted: 9 Aug 2011 Last revised: 5 Apr 2012
Date Written: August 9, 2011
Abstract
America is in the midst of a “fantasy sports revolution” that is changing the way sports fans interact with one another. With more than 30 million Americans playing fantasy sports, today’s sports fans spend as much time predicting the performance of professional athletes as Wall Street investors spend predicting stocks and bonds.
This article explains how U.S. law regulates the emerging fantasy sports industry. Part I of this article provides an overview of the history of fantasy sports leagues. Part II explores the fantasy sports industry today. Part III explains how U.S. laws apply to fantasy sports host sites. Part IV discusses how U.S. laws apply to fantasy sports participants. Finally, Part V applies U.S. laws to businesses that provide ancillary services to fantasy sports host sites and participants.
Keywords: sports, fantasy sports, fantasy baseball, fantasy football, gaming law, gambling, intellectual property, publicity rights, trademarks, copyright, patent, Uniform Internet Gambling Act, Queen Anne statutes, virtual worlds, Internet
JEL Classification: L82, L83, L86, L89, O34, P46, Z10, D21, K11, K12, K20, K23, L00, L50, M30, O14, O30
Suggested Citation: Suggested Citation