Daily fantasy sports is legal in Alaska and has been for as long as it has existed. Indeed, in a state that has taken a consistently hard line on all forms of gambling, it is one of the few legal forms of gambling, due to its legal status as a game of skill rather than chance.

Todd Winkler, Editor at online-gambling.com

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Todd Winkler has been an editor at online-gambling.com for 6 years. His focus is on guides and articles about poker games, blackjack, and DFS. With relatives in New Zealand, he is also well aware of the gambling industry in the country.

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Online Daily Fantasy Sports in Alaska – Overview

Almost all forms of gambling are illegal in Alaska and this does not appear likely to change anytime soon. Tax revenues from a thriving oil and gas industry have mitigated any pressure on lawmakers to consider the introduction of gambling and all recent efforts to do so have not got off the ground. For casino games, online games, all forms of poker and sports betting, you have no option but to travel to other states (or at least to international waters on a cruise ship). There is not even a state lottery. Daily fantasy sports have always been an exception as the licensing authorities have designated them games of skill and therefore not subject to the statewide ban on gambling: in order to win consistently, participants must generally have a grasp of statistics and bankroll management as well as some knowledge of the sport itself. Another popular site that is exempt from the state’s draconian gambling laws is WorldWinner, where players can engage in a variety of games, such as Spades and Bejeweled, for real money. Given the lack of ambiguity in Alaskan law, the biggest impediment to daily fantasy sports enthusiasts is connectivity as the internet coverage can be very patchy in this sparsely-populated and snowy state.

Here is a list of daily fantasy sports available in Alaska:

Online Daily Fantasy NFL – build your dream line-up and compete against fellow NFL fans every day

There is no NFL team in Alaska and the most popular team in the state is apparently the Seattle Seahawks, whose stadium is a cool 2,000 miles south of Anchorage. Undeterred, many Alaskans are big NFL fans and daily fantasy NFL is very popular in the Last Frontier. Although there are only 16 games in the regular season, the opportunities to constantly tweak and upgrade your lineup mean you won’t be standing idle for long or you might miss a blockbuster trade opportunity.

Online Daily Fantasy NHL – for when it’s just too cold to go to the rink

Apparently Alaska is too cold, even for hardy NHL players, and the state is still without an NHL team, but that has not dampened Alaskans’ enthusiasm, with the Alaska Anchorage Seawolves flying the Alaskan flag in the NCAA Division I for ice hockey. When it comes to NHL daily fantasy, with 82 games in a six-month season, there are a lot of opportunities to play with your lineup so fortune certainly favors the attentive!

Online Daily Fantasy NBA – a slam dunk for all basketball fans

Despite the frigid temperatures, there are plenty of basketball fans to be found in Alaska as the Great Alaskan shootout showcased the nation’s best college basketball players over Thanksgiving weekend for forty years until 2017. The NBA season is 82 games long so daily fantasy sports players can expect to be kept busy. More so than any other sport, injuries and hot/cold streaks have a huge impact on fantasy scorelines so it pays to keep a close eye on the news.

Online Daily Fantasy MLB – a no-doubt homerun

Of the four major US sports, baseball is the least well-known in Alaska. However, with the MLB season running from April to October, there is plenty of daily fantasy sports action to be had during the low seasons for football, ice hockey and basketball. With a 162-game season and games on every night during the season – apart from the all-star break in mid-July – there is enough happening to keep even the most avid daily fantasy sports players occupied.

Timeline of Daily Fantasy Sports Legislation

Since its emergence in the mid-2000s, daily fantasy sports has been legal in Alaska. However, unlike almost 20 other states, there has been no clarification from Alaska’s attorney general and so its status as a game of skill remains legally unconfirmed. Daily fantasy sports are widely assumed to be legal under the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act of 2006, which excludes fantasy sports that meet certain requirements. However, pending an opinion from the state attorney general, the door remains open for Alaska to follow the example of some other states and designate them games of chance, thereby outlawing them. For more information about Alaska gambling visit our dedicated page.

Legal Daily Fantasy Betting Age in Alaska

The minimum gambling age in Alaska is 21 years old though 19 to 20 year olds can go to the limited number of bingo halls in the state. In the US, underage gambling is usually charged as a misdemeanor and there is nothing to suggest that Alaska takes a different approach. It is usually the gambling establishment that is the focus of the punishment in such cases, rather than the underage gambler, and a lenient response seems unlikely, given Alaska’s highly restrictive gambling laws. Considering the dearth of opportunities in The Last Frontier, it would be difficult for minors to even attempt to engage in underage gambling.

• DFS Betting Age
  The legal age for daily fantasy sports betting in Alaska is assumed to be 21
• Alcohol Age
  You can legally drink if you are 21 or over in Alaska.
• Weed Age
  Recreational marijuana use is legal for Alaskans aged 21 and above.

Is Daily Fantasy Betting Legal Outside of the State?

The US is by far the biggest global market for daily fantasy sports, which dovetails with its culture of year-round non-stop sporting entertainment. While daily fantasy sports is legal in most states, this is often not official: in 2016, Virginia became the first state to officially legalize it. As such, in many states, the legal status is precarious and almost all operators left Hawaii, for example, after the state attorney general concluded daily fantasy sports constituted illegal gambling. They are one of eight states that are not served by the main daily fantasy sports operators, such as DraftKings and FanDuel, many of which are situated around the Rockies. A negative attorney general opinion, however, is not necessarily a game-ender as demonstrated by Texas, which continues to be served by DraftKings and FanDuel, despite the attorney general designating it to be gambling in 2016. Daily fantasy betting in Indiana on the other hand, is legal and already one of the favourite pastimes of the passionate punters living there.

The Best Fantasy Sports App in Alaska

DraftKings and FanDuel dominate the market across the US and both have wildly popular apps, compatible with Apple and Android operating systems. The apps allow the user to easily draft players, make lineup changes on the move and stay up-to-date with their bets, though data availability in Alaska is not on the level of Silicon Valley! In terms of user experience and overall polish, FanDuel is widely regarded to be the best, especially for beginners. DraftKings’ app is not quite as slick but the sheer variety of sports available may be enough to win fans over and some of their prizes are truly eye-popping.

Taxes on Daily Fantasy Winnings: Legal Overview

As almost all forms of gambling are prohibited in Alaska, there is no established convention on the taxation of winnings. Daily fantasy winnings appear to be subject to federal tax laws, which mandates players to report an annual profit of $600 or more, net of deposits and entry fees, to the IRS. This constitutes taxable income and the IRS will calculate the amount owed. If you can show that you play daily fantasy sports regularly with the intention of turning a profit, you can report it as business income and deduct losses from other taxable income. There is nothing to indicate that taxation on daily fantasy winnings is any different in Alaska.

Upcoming Regulation Changes to Be Aware Of

Advocates for more liberal gambling laws in Alaska have long been disappointed and are likely to remain so. Since the turn of the millennium, the two major events in the state legislature pertaining to gambling have been the rejection of the creation of a state lottery in 2003 and a comfortable majority of the public rejecting the legalization of gambling in 2008. The limited public demand for legalized gambling and healthy state coffers justify the widespread pessimism over any law changes in the short to medium-term. Given the lack of legal clarification on daily fantasy sports’ status in Alaska, it is difficult to forecast whether or not this may also come under fire in the future, given a seemingly entrenched anti-gambling culture, and its rapid growth across the US may lead to greater scrutiny and public discussion. For the time being, however, daily fantasy sports remain 100% legal in Alaska and arguably the only major outlet for gamers in the state.

Daily Fantasy Guides for Nearby States

• Hawaii
• Washington
• Montana
• Idaho