11 Days to NYC: FSTA FAST FACT: Research, and the Growth of Fantasy Sports

By Will Mossa,    FSGA Event News

The Fantasy Sports Trade association will release the findings of its 2015 study on June 23 at the FSTA Summer Conference in New York. Past research by the FSTA demonstrates while fantasy football and fantasy baseball remain the top two sports, both have reached a stable level of growth.

For example, in a three-year span from 2011-2013, there was virtually no change in the percentage of overall fantasy players who played fantasy football-77% in 2011, 74% in 2012 and 77% in 2013. Fantasy baseball was the same: 34% of fantasy players said they played baseball in 2011, 32% in 2012 and 33% in 2013.

And while fantasy basketball participation in that period waned, three sports showed surprising growth spurts. Fantasy NASCAR racing grew by more than 33% in that time frame, from 15% participation in 2011 to 21% participation in 2013. Fantasy hockey participation grew more than 28% in that span, from 14% in 2011 to 18% in 2013. Finally, fantasy NCAA football grew almost 50%, from 13% participation in 2011 to 20% ion 2013-the same percentage of players who played fantasy NBA basketball that year.

The 2015 study will update these numbers in a presentation that will focus on trends in participation, spending, and mobile devices. The presentation is moderated by Danielle MacLean, director of fantasy sports for CBS Sports, and will be presented by Jason Allsopp, vice president of Ipsos Reid. It will explore the spending behaviors of traditional fantasy and daily fantasy players, and also how they are playing across various platforms, such as computers, mobile devices and emerging media.


The 2015 FSTA Summer Conference is June 22-23 at the Crowne Plaza Times Square Hotel in New York City. Registration for this event is still open. To register, go to www.fstaconference.com.