California Attorney General Says Daily Fantasy Sports Are Illegal

The California AG’s 33-page opinion As anticipated, Rob Bonta states that the California penal law forbids daily fantasy sports activities, such as pick’em and draft-style contests. According to the opinion, “numerous” public opinions on both sides of the issue were received and taken into consideration.

According to the viewpoint, “daily fantasy sports games allow players to win or lose money depending on the result of sporting events played by third-party athletes, just like traditional sports wagering.”

Underdog Sports filed a lawsuit to try to prevent Bonta from publishing the ruling, claiming that the opinion’s release constituted a “imminent, existential threat” to its operations. However, the lawsuit was dismissed on Wednesday. Underdog has been aware of the upcoming opinion for a year and a half, according to the California state judge, and “have not established that they will suffer any harm as a result of the issuance of [the opinion].”

Underdog responded by telling Front Office Sports on Wednesday that it will keep running its daily fantasy sports competition in California.

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While telling FOS that it “expects companies to come into compliance with the law,” the California Department of Justice did not say if it would take enforcement action if companies refused to comply. They said, “Any specific action beyond that is premature.”

Despite the fact that conventional sports betting is illegal in California, Underdog has maintained that its daily fantasy sports products are games of skill rather than chance, as determined by courts in New York and Illinois. As a result, they are permitted under California law.

The fact that sports betting is viewed as a game of pure chance rather than skill is one of the main reasons why certain states have refused to authorize it. According to Underdog, its daily fantasy sports products demand that players conduct “significant research,” some of which span a whole season and call for constant observation.

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