States continue to join the bandwagon against daily fantasy sports gaming with the state of Alabama being the latest to decide that the sports contests are considered illegal gambling.
New York started what is seemingly a domino effect, with the attorney general of the state ruling that DFS is illegal gambling. Nevada and several other states have joined in over the past few months and now Attorney General Luther Strange of Alabama has issued a cease and desist letter to both FanDuel and DraftKings, citing DFS is illegal gambling.
Both DFS brands have until the 1st of May to stop offering their daily fantasy sports contests within Alabama. The state is no stranger to denying gambling activities, having no lottery or commercial casinos. In a press release on the matter, Strange stated that as the Attorney General, it is his duty to uphold Alabama law, including laws against illegal gambling.
Strange stated further that daily fantasy sports operators claim that they offer the contests legally under the laws of Alabama but paid daily fantasy sports contests are in fact illegal gambling under the state law.
Alabama law constitutes an activity as illegal gambling if the individual stakes something of value on a contest, no matter how much skill predominates, to win a prize. Strange did admit that DFS does have a measure of skill.
However, in the end, the AG says that contestants have no control over the performance of players of their rosters which throws chance into the mix. With the ruling in Alabama, there are now 12 states that have declared DFS illegal.
Just a few other states have decided to create regulations in the DFS industry. Massachusetts just joined Virginia and Indiana as a state to put regulations in place to regulate daily fantasy sports gaming. In Massachusetts, operators have to allow gaming to those who are 21 or older and avoid hosting contests that feature collegiate or high school sports.
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