Daily Fantasy Sports has grown popular in the United States over the last few years. The concept rose to prominence across the country after restrictions were placed on sports betting with the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act (PASPA). DFS is considered a game of skill rather than chance, and wasn't affected by the ban.
However, a lot of concerns have been raised over the legality of DFS in the country in the last couple of years. Currently, DFS is active in 44 states of the federation but just 19 of them have statutes that formally legalize the gaming. It is, however, not allowed in collegiate sports as the NCAA has been critical of it for a long time. There are several DFS platforms operating across the country, we examine the best options available to players.
DraftKings
Already an established market leader in the American Daily Fantasy Sports industry, DraftKings was launched in 2012. DraftKings offers a variety of DFS contests on its platform, enticing players with lucrative bonuses, free entries and guaranteed prize pools. The fantasy platform has the traditional tournament, multipliers, 50/50s, head-to-heads, etc.
The Boston-based company allows users to actively participate in daily and weekly contests where they can win prize money based on performances of players in the American major leagues. DraftKings has built a reputation in the county's DFS space and become a fan favorite. The fantasy sports platform can be accessed on mobile devices on both Android and iOS. DraftKings DFS is available across 44 American states including California, Florida, New York, Texas and Virginia.
FanDuel
FanDuel is a household name in the United States online gaming industry. Launched in 2009, the fantasy sports platform has grown huge across the country maintaining its place as a top option. FanDuel has a comprehensive list of tournament types and a host of options in the American major sports leagues.
A number of contests are available to users on the FanDuel DFS platform such as single-game contests, quick picks contests and the score games. With a sleek and elegant interface, the New York-based DFS provider boasts of an intuitive design which ensures a supreme gaming experience for users far and wide. FanDuel fantasy sport platform can be accessed on mobile devices on both Android and iOS. FanDuel is available to players across 44 states of the federation including Florida, Illinois, New York, New Jersey and Pennsylvania.
PrizePicks
New players in the world of Daily Fantasy Sports could find it quite confusing, but PrizePicks offers an excellent solution to that. Kick-starting operations in 2018, the platform presents the simplest fantasy gaming available on the market. Basically, players on PrizePicks predict whether a certain player will go under or over their fantasy points line.
PrizePicks effectively eliminates factors that can take advantage of newbies and inexperienced players such as the sharks and the optimizer and put them against their projection. The platform gets rid of the custom peer-to-peer aspect of fantasy sports and presents them a brand new gaming format. PrizePicks arguably offers more player props than most legal sportsbooks in the country. The platform can be accessed through apps available on both Android and iOS. PrizePicks is available in 30 American states including Georgia, Michigan and Texas.
Monkey Knife Fight
Monkey Knife Fight offers a unique type of gaming in the American daily fantasy sports space. Named after a famous scene in the favorite American animated sitcom The Simpsons, Monkey Knife Fight operates a DFS contest where players are pitting their wits against the house, rather than one another.
The platform offers its users different forms of player prop which include Stat Shootout, More or Less, and Rapid Fire. Analysts might find it pretty difficult to class Monkey Knife Fight into any specific category, as it offers vivid daily fantasy elements and also hosts prediction contests which resembles the traditional prop bets on sportsbooks.
The DFS platform offers markets to users in all the American major sport leagues. The platform mobile app is only available on iOS currently; Android users can only access it via the web. Money Knife Fight is available in 37 American states which include California, Maryland and Texas.
ThriveFantasy
ThriveFantasy is one of the many exciting options available to players in the American daily fantasy sports industry. Founded in 2016, the fantasy platform offers a unique type of contest to users which makes it much easier in making selection.
ThriveFantasy is a streamline fantasy gaming platform that focuses on top-tier athletes in major leagues and effectively eliminates the need to scroll endlessly in search for options. The players on the platform also do not have to worry about salary cap like in other top platforms, and only have to choose the best performer between two players in the a stat category.
It is one of the few DFS providers that offer a gaming market in eSports. ThriveFantasy is available to users on mobile devices both on iOS and Android. The DFS provider legally operates in 33 states of the federation, including California, Michigan, New York and Ohio.
ParlayPlay
ParlayPlay is an impressive platform that has taken the daily fantasy sports industry by storm since it launched in 2020. The platform has gained prominence far across the country in a short period of time and has garnered a wide network of users in several states of the federation. Contest on ParlayPlay aren't peer-to-peer, users are rather playing against themselves with an aim to beat the house.
The fantasy gaming platform is a brilliant option for players looking for an alternate DFS format to participate in. ParlayPlay offers industry-first innovations such as the contest insurance into its platform to engage users better, and these moves have contributed to its rapid growth across the country.
With a sleek interface and endless stream of promotion, ParlayPlay continues to position itself as a notable player in the DFS industry. The platform can be accessed in 28 of states across the federation including Texas, Florida and California.
Yahoo Fantasy
Having been available in the industry over a long period, Yahoo Fantasy has passed several tests of time and continues to remain relevant. The platform has offered season-long fantasy contests since the heyday of its parent company in the 90s. It eventually made its entry into the daily fantasy space in 2015 with the aim to compete with the dominant FanDuel and DraftKings. The platform offers a pretty efficient interface and a user-friendly design which makes navigation smooth and easy.
Yahoo Fantasy options include guaranteed prize pool, head-to-head and 50/50s, giving users the opportunity to select according to preferences. It also gives users the opportunity to easily swap players at any time prior to the start of the game. The fantasy platform is available on mobile apps on both the Android and iOS devices. Yahoo Fantasy is available in 40 American states which include Virginia, Pennsylvania, Texas and California.
