Online fantasy sports operators DraftKings and FanDuel will no longer do business in Alabama after Alabama Attorney General Luther Strange said the sites were illegal under state law.
Both companies have entered into settlements with the State of Alabama to cease operations in the state effective May 2. The settlements come in response to the attorney general’s determination that the online games constitute illegal gambling under Alabama’s gambling statutes. Strange issued cease and desist letters to the two companies April 5.
“I am pleased to report that fantasy sports operators DraftKings and FanDuel have complied with my order that they halt paid contests within the State of Alabama,” said Strange in a statement April 29.
“As attorney general it is my duty to uphold Alabama law, including the laws against illegal gambling. The daily fantasy sports operations violate state law because a player stakes something of value on a contest of chance in order to win a prize,” Strange said. “While there is a measure of skill involved in creating a fantasy sports roster, in the end contestants have no control over the performance of the players on their rosters. This activity is illegal under Alabama law.”
Joe Godfrey, executive director of Alabama Citizens Action Program, praised the attorney general’s actions.
“We commend the attorney general for enforcing the anti-gambling laws of Alabama and hope that he will continue to do so,” Godfrey said.
Alabama joins nine other states — Arizona, Hawaii, Iowa, Louisiana, Mississippi, Montana, Nevada, New York and Washington — in banning payouts from these online games. Residents of the excluded states can have accounts but cannot receive prizes, according to terms of use at both sites.
Three states — Tennessee, Indiana and Virginia — have passed legislation this year to regulate online daily fantasy sports. A similar bill has passed both houses of the Mississippi state Legislature and is awaiting a decision by Gov. Phil Bryant.
According to a statement on FanDuel’sz website, 30 states are advancing legislation that would allow fantasy sports operators to conduct business in those states. Bills introduced in the Alabama House and Senate have been postponed and will not be brought up again this legislative session.
However, in a statement on its website FanDuel stated its intent to “clarify the law in Alabama with the aim of bringing our contests back to the state at some point in the future.”
Godfrey said legislators should not try to legitimize any form of gambling.
“We hope the legislators will not bow to pressure from out-of-state companies,” Godfrey said. “This is gambling, something that the people of Alabama have said they don’t want.”
Share with others: