The disruptive companies of daily fantasy sites have been making news lately about additional funding for the market leaders, FanDuel and DraftKings. In an effort to cater to the general public, the daily fantasy game providers may look towards mainstream advertisement to help introduce players to daily fantasy sports and their growing companies.
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In August, the NBA lifted its ban on teams to sell sponsorship to fantasy operators. That allowed FanDuel to partner up with Orlando Magic that selected FanDuel as a Champions of Community Sponsor. The deal has been reported in the neighborhood of $2 million and allows FanDuel to advertise during Magic games with on court signage and in the Orlando Magic app.
There is now a report that the Chicago Bulls may also follow the lead of the Orlando Magic and strike a deal with one of the daily fantasy game providers.
There has been a growing momentum of events for daily fantasy and the mainstream. Recently, mainstream brands USAToday and Sports Illustrated started their own daily fantasy sites. In addition, one of the big four sports: Major League Baseball endorsed daily fantasy with their selection of DraftKings as the official MLB mini game.
Commentary
I have noticed increased advertising from daily fantasy on the radio, TV and internet. Through the radio, listeners can enter their promo code to earn additional bonuses. On TV, the ads are more informative about what daily fantasy is. Internet advertisement seems to be more ad targeted as I assume most of my work makes me a prime target for ads on Facebook and YouTube.
When I explain daily fantasy to people, I still get a common reaction and question of why it isn't gambling such as the poker sites. I think this will continue be the case when daily fantasy game providers sole incentive is to play for money. That is different from the league type games where social network are formed and that interaction is the main reason for people playing fantasy sports.
