History of Fantasy Sports

The popularity of Fantasy Sports continues to build at a staggering rate throughout North America and around the world. Once thought of as something only “sports nerds” participated in, Fantasy Sports are now widely accepted and a huge part of the Internet mainstream.

It is estimated that over 27 million people play online fantasy sports in the USA and that it’s a $4 billion global industry. People who knew nothing about or even cared about sports are now emerged in the world of Fantasy Sports and the contagious excitement it provides.

The Birth of Fantasy Football

Fantasy Football can trace it’s roots back to 1962 when a group of Oakland Raiders management and sports writers hatched a plan in New York during a Raiders three week road trip. Bob Winkenbach, who was a limited partner with Oakland Raiders, along with Bill Tunnell, the Raiders public relations guru, got the ball rolling.

Oakland Tribune sports writers Scotty Stirling and George Ross along with Philip Carmona, a friend of Winkenbach, got in on the discussion and the Greater Oakland Professional Pigskin Prognosticators League was born.

Fantasy Sports Explode Along Side The Internet

The advent of personal computers and the Internet helped burst Fantasy Sports onto the global scene in the late 90’s. Sports media sites such as CBS and ESPN along with NFL.com and Yahoo led the way by offering free Fantasy Football leagues to the mass audience of the NFL. Today NFL Fantasy Football is played on many levels and by a huge cross section of the population world wide.

Men and women, old and young, have latched on to Fantasy Football and are not letting go. From small 12 team office leagues, to people drafting with friends in their basement, to the World Championship of Fantasy Football held annually in Las Vegas, the wave of Fantasy Football continues to surge. The WCOFF offers one of the richest rewards in Fantasy Football with an astonishingly $300,000 first place award annually.

Fantasy Sports Goes Social

The massive appeal of Fantasy Sports is evident on Internet social media sites everywhere. From Facebook to Twitter, and throughout the blogger community, people are buzzing about it everyday. Ingenious Fantasy Sports “League Commissioners” are constantly tweaking the rules to build a better “mouse trap” and attract Fantasy Fanatics to their web sites.

In the end, Fantasy Sports is a fantastic way to get more enjoyment from the great world of sports. It builds friendships, rivalries, business relationships and does it while challenging the mind. Fantasy Sports, more than any other entity, is the point where Fantasy really does meet with Reality.