Fantasy Sports. The word has become an enormous phenomenon today, and many experts believe it to have a promising future. For all sports fans, this word may not be something new. Still, it has undoubtedly registered in the minds of the general people during the pandemic period. Want to know more? Have a look at some of the points that will further increase your information about Fantasy Sports:
India is believed to be the largest market for Fantasy Sports. According to a recent report published by the Federation of Indian Fantasy Sports (FIFS) and KPMG’ Business of Fantasy Sports’, gross revenue of fantasy sports operators stood at Rs. 2,400 crores (US$ 340.47 million) for FY20 compared with Rs—920 crores (US$ 131.64 million) in FY19.
Certain prominent players such as Dream11, My11circle, Howzat etc., have a combined user base of over 100 million. This highlights the demand for Fantasy Sports in our nation.
Apart from cricket, such platforms also cover various other sports such as football, hockey, kabaddi, NBA, rugby etc.
This will significantly contribute to employment opportunities in our country, which faced a wave of unemployment due to the unforeseen circumstances created by the Covid-19 pandemic.
The sector’s growth is such that it is expected to contribute around Rs13500 crore in taxes to the Indian government over 5 years. Lockdown had a significant role to play here because, during this period, people took a keen interest in watching sports as it was one of the few entertainments left and Fantasy Sports just came along.
Fantasy Sports is one of its kind. It can only be played live as it’s a real-time simulation game. No user can play the game before or after the match. The game is not a gamble. You need to utilize your skillset as well as knowledge to play the game. It requires a proper understanding of the game as well as some research.
Therefore, we can say that it is not similar to gambling and is a legitimate business. This concept is still illegal in India, such as Assam, Odisha, Telangana, Sikkim, Nagaland and Andhra Pradesh.
The game involves complete transparency. Every player can see and track the players they are competing with. They can see their teams, points, rankings etc.
Fantasy Sports can also be called the Stock Market of Sports. You select stocks that are expected to grow your money. The same is the case with fantasy sports; you choose players expected to perform in a particular match.
The concept of Fantasy Sports is spread across every age group. From teenagers to senior citizens, everyone likes to put their knowledge, skill and understanding of the game to test.
People have also started playing Fantasy Sports to stay connected to the sport they love. Many platforms provide the Free to Play platform, where the users can create their fantasy teams without involving any money. This has solved the dual purpose of gaming as well as knowledge building.
Often team loyalty is also tested because fantasy players want their players to perform irrespective of whether their team is losing or winning. For example, in a match between Mumbai Indians and Chennai Super Kings, a Mumbai Indians supporter would be in a dilemma to pray for Mahendra Singh Dhoni to get out early or score some runs he has picked him in his fantasy team.
A new regulatory authority has been established by the government. Federation of Indian Fantasy Sports (FIFS) is a Section 8 Company incorporated under the (Indian) Companies Act, 2013 for the purpose of self-regulation and promotion of best practices in Online Fantasy Sports services and contests offered in India.
We hope this article gave you sufficient information about Fantasy Sports.
Written by: Aditya Paharia
