DraftKings and FanDuel agree to suspend all college sports
Daily fantasy sports operators reach agreement with National Collegiate Athletic Association to temporarily ban all college contests
Daily fantasy sports (DFS) operators DraftKings and FanDuel have reached an agreement with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) to suspend contents on all college sports. [private]
The temporary ban will come into force after this weekâs March Madness tournament ends, and comes just weeks after both operators voluntarily agreed to exit New York.
College sports do not make up a large portion of play on either site, accounting for around 3% of total revenues on FanDuel. But the NCAA is notoriously protective of using student athletes for profitable purposes.
In a statement, FanDuel said it had been locked in âproductive conversationsâ with the NCAA and state legislatures for a number of months to better understand their concerns.
âIt is clear that this is an issue that matters to a variety of constituencies and we feel the best path forward is to suspend offering these contests pending resolution on the issue within state legislatures,â FanDuel added.
Rival DraftKings said: âThere are many passionate DFS players who love college sports, but after a productive dialogue with the NCAA [â¦] we feel this is the best path forward for the industry at this time.â
The decision comes after Indiana became the second state to legalize and regulate DFS, with a carve-out that operators canât offer contests on college sports.
Legislation with similar language is currently being considered in New York.Â