When I was growing up, the Dallas Cowboys were the team whom I cheered for exclusively, week in and week out. As many fantasy football players can relate, they are not anymore. That is not because the Cowboys have not been serious contenders since the Jimmy Johnson/Barry Switzer days but because I am a fantasy football owner. That means that the goals of my fantasy team doesn't always match that of the Dallas Cowboys.
There are many types of sports fans just like there are many types of fantasy football players. There are casual fantasy football players, serious ones, and then there are serious-serious players. These players are entering in high-stakes leagues where the payoff range in tens of thousands of dollars. These high stakes players are definitely not interested in their hometown team when their fantasy football team bring in the cash.
If you were unaware of the professional and high stakes world of fantasy football, the following two articles can give you an inside look:
- Ira Bouday from Bloomberg article Fantasy Football, Vegas Style
- Colin Daileda from Mashable article More Than a Game: The Disruptive Force of Fantasy Football
Understanding players that participate in professional and high-stakes leagues can provide insights in the trends of the overall fantasy football market. These players are going to demand and seek the best tools, content and information to be able to compete as the "early-adopters" of the industry. And understanding the "early-adopters" can translate to the mainstream technology and games. The daily fantasy sports market has seen this type of growth, propelled by these professional players.
There is still a fine, yet distinct line between serious players and players that are willing to play for money.
How players define themselves would be valuable for gaming platforms such as ESPN, Yahoo, and CBS Sports to determine.
