NFL Named Alongside Gambling Companies in New Lawsuit

A new lawsuit filed against FanDuel, DraftKings, and the National Football League (NFL), as well as the league’s official data provider, accuses all parties of sharing data in a way that incentivized harmful gambling behavior and harmed consumers. A specific type of product was cited in the complaint. 

The complaint filed in Pennsylvania stated that FanDuel and DraftKings were using NFL data and promoting an “addictive product.” The sportsbooks are also accused of incentivizing two of the plaintiffs to keep playing as part of their VIP programs designed to reward high-spending players.

New Lawsuit in PA Targets Some of the Biggest Sports, Betting Stakeholders 

Interestingly, among the defending parties is also Genius Sports, the company that provides the information to sportsbooks through a partnership with the NFL. 

The complaint further goes into detail about the product that it believes has contributed to the pernicious effect of the gambling, citing in-play micro betting markets as the point of contention. 

The attorneys for the two plaintiffs further specified that their clients ended up developing a gambling disorder, with the pair collectively spending more than $2 million over the course of several years with both sportsbooks:

“That all changed once they started using the FanDuel and DraftKings Sportsbook Apps. Within just a few years of placing their first microbets on the Sportsbook Apps, Plaintiffs nearly lost everything.” 

Micro-betting has been questioned before, but no case has successfully proven in a court of law that the onus lies squarely on the vertical or that licensed sportsbooks have acted disingenuously.

In fact, the majority of sportsbooks in the United States follow a very strict code of conduct when it comes to VIP customers, and subsequent losses are seldom attributed to something that the businesses have done. 

Identified as Christopher Sage and Terry Thompson, the plaintiffs stated that they had been incentivized through various means to continue playing. Thomospon for example, ended up losing close to $1.83 million to the sportsbooks since October 2022, when he first joined FanDuel and DraftKings, which he joined in 2022. 

Among the incentives extended by the sportsbooks were Super Bowl LVI tickets, hotel accommodation, a $500 bottle of champagne, and more. Sage was also bombarded with similar perks. 

Sage was eventually diagnosed with a gambling disorder and placed on the state’s self-exclusion list. The pair is hoping to bring the case in front of a jury and be compensated for damages and attorney fees, as well as use their case as the basis of further prohibition against the alleged wrongdoing by the defendants.