NYSJ Sports-Entertainment Business News Service

January 22, 2019: Stating that “they see a need for “an association of companies that not only offer fantasy sports, but also emerging gaming opportunities,” the Fantasy Sports Trade Assn.said it would change its name and expand its focus as the Fantasy Sports & Gaming Assn.

The news, unveiled in Tampa during the FSTA Winter Conference, will be effective in April.

FSTA said the changes would “better enable the association to expand its mission to include all the new markets emerging in sports: sports betting, games of skills and non-sports contests.

“We see a need for an association of companies that not only offer fantasy sports, but also emerging gaming opportunities,” Paul Charchian, FSTA president, said via the organization.

“Non-sports fantasy games, eSports and sports betting have gameplay similarities, shared vendors, shared customers and shared legal goals. We will build on our 21-year track record of helping to grow the businesses within these industries.”

FTSA add that with last year’s U.S. Supreme Court decision to overturn the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act of 1992 and allow states to decide whether to legalize sports betting, the “expanded scope of the association will allow members to network with the deal makers in these new markets and to collectively work to ensure that the new laws allow members to compete in the marketplace.”

Since the decision, leagues such as the NFL, MLB, NBA and NHL have signed official alliances within the legal sports betting community, as have a number of pro teams.

Pro sports leagues in the U.S. are set to receive a potential $4.2 billion boost in annual revenue, not just from the betting but also from such platforms as advertising, data. merchandise and sponsorship, according to the American Gaming Assn.

Even with the name change and more encompassing focus, FSGA said it would continue to be the leading association for the fantasy sports industry, but its expanded focus will offer a forum for companies that offer games, services, analytics, and content for both legal contests of skill and sports gaming.

The number of fantasy sports players has increased exponentially, to nearly 60 million in the U.S. and Canada since the FSTA was formed, according to the organization.

In addition to providing research and data, key networking opportunities and a forum for collective action for the industry, FSTA said it has led legal efforts to defend the use of player names in fantasy contests and to defend fantasy sports as legal games of skill, “spearheading an effort that has seen 20 states pass laws confirming paid fantasy sports contests are legal games of skill.”

The debut event of the FSGA will be its June 27-28 Summer Conference in New York.