There are few – if any – states in the USA that could rival New York as a hub for professional sports. With some of the most famous major league teams in the world calling the state home, it’s no wonder that so many of its residents are so keen on playing Daily Fantasy Sports (DFS)!

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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Daily Fantasy in New York

There have been many twists and turns to the story of DFS’s legalization in New York. After the then-Attorney General of New York declared DFS operators of facilitating illegal gambling in the state, lawmakers moved to legalize them. In August of 2016, legal DFS became a reality. Now, three years later, some are calling the legalization efforts unconstitutional and are looking again to ban fantasy sports from the state. For the time being, residents can still enjoy DFS on a number of platforms.

Online Daily Fantasy Sports in New York – Overview

Since its legalization in 2016, many thought that Daily Fantasy Sports would be an unchallenged reality for the foreseeable future in New York. However, in 2018, a New York ruling Supreme Court Judge declared that the changes to DFS’ classification was unconstitutional and has now put the legality of DFS in jeopardy. There are current court cases underway looking to define one and for all if another route needs to be taken to assure that daily fantasy sports can go ahead in the state, but for now, it is still classified as a game of skill.

Meanwhile, lawmakers have recently legalized sports betting in the state at land-based vendors. Despite this, online sports betting is yet to be legalized as it may call for the same constitutional amendments that some are arguing will need to take place before DFS is properly legal. In the meantime, DFS operators are still active in the state and locals are free to draft their fantasy teams for their favorite leagues.

Below, we have listed the top sports leagues in New York and how they can be played in DFS.

Online Daily Fantasy MLB – New York’s Living Legends Await You

When people think of baseball, they think of New York’s iconic Yankees. As the most successful team in the whole Major League Baseball franchise, their players are also some of the most picked In MLB Fantasy. In this league, contestants are to draft a Player Pool of 10 players to play against their competition. The players must be on that week’s playing roster, have no more than 5 hitters per team and be scheduled in at least two different MLB games. Scoring is varied, including 10 points for a home run, 5 points for stealing bases, etc.

Online Daily Fantasy NFL –A Giants Fan’s Dream

The oldest team remaining team in the NFL is the New York Giants – a team so good they’ve won every Super Bowl they’ve played! The NFL Fantasy League is the perfect opportunity to put the Giants to another test. Here, players can draft their favorite 9 NFL stars into their lineup in either public or private contests, their selections determined only by what their salary allows. Cash prizes are won at the end of every week.

Online Daily Fantasy NBA – Get Your Kicks With The Knicks

Are you a New York native? You’d be mad to skip over New York Knicks players in your fantasy draft. In NBA Fantasy, players are asked to draft a lineup of 8 players from at least two different NBA games within a salary cap of $50,000. Contests are won by having the highest total points scored by your chosen players, e.g. 2 points for a steal, 1.5 points for an assist.

Online Daily Fantasy NHL – A Whole Range Of Prizes To Be Won

Lead your team to victory with the New York Rangers, one of the oldest teams in the NHL and the first-ever Stanley Cup winners. In the NHL Fantasy League contestants to draft teams of 9 players from at least 3 different teams – including the Rangers of course! Points are awarded to players for their goals, assists, and blocked shots, with goalkeepers also earning more points for successful gameplay.

College Fantasy Sport – Go Orange

New York is home to some of the most renowned universities in the world, and within them, some of the best collegiate athletic programs in the country. Choosing the best college team is no easy feat, but based on statistics, the title will need to go to Syracuse University’s Syracuse Orange program. Namely, the Syracuse Orange football team, are some of the most revered talents in the whole NCAA, having won 700 games in their 130+ year history and regularly being named as the Associated Press’ Best College Football Teams in the Country.

Fans often come out to cheer on the Orange in the 49,000 capacity Carrier Dome, with many hoping that another National Title is on the way. For now, DFS fans can show their love for Orange players by drafting them into their DFS College League lineups.

Timeline of Daily Fantasy Sports Legislation

While the state’s early years saw a particularly harsh anti-gambling attitude guide lawmakers, the last century has seen New York open up to the benefits of gambling – all the way up to its recent legalization of DFS and sports betting. Below is a timeline of important years in New York’s gambling history leading up to DFS legalization. For more information on gambling in the state, visit our New York gambling page.

Legal Daily Fantasy Betting Age in New York

According to state law, players must be 18 years old or older to legally participate in online DFS betting. This is the same for playing bingo, lottery, or gambling at casinos, but differs from racetrack gambling which requires players to be 21 years of age or older. If a player is caught gambling underage, there are no penalties – but venues and operators knowingly allowing a minor to gamble could face fines up to $25,000 as well as a loss of license.

• DFS Betting Age
  Players must be 18 years old to partake in DFS in New York.
• Alcohol Age
  You must be 21 years old to drink alcohol in New York.
• Weed Age
  Recreational cannabis smoking is still illegal in New York.

Is Daily Fantasy Betting Legal Outside of the State?

Just as it goes for New York, DFS betting is now legal in most states across the USA. There are only nine states yet to legalize DFS, including Idaho, Hawaii and Montana. While a few of these states are attempting to navigate the tricky legislative routes to legalization, some have remained opposed to entirely to the legalization of any form of gambling, despite whether it is a game of skill or a game of chance. With New York’s legal status of DFS now under threat, we hope that the stakeholders involved in the issue are mindful of the dominant attitude in the USA towards such activities, as it is apparent that most lawmakers in the country are now seeing that their constituents want to be able to play fantasy sports.

The Best Fantasy Sports App in New York

Thankfully, Daily Fantasy Sports betting is not limited to desktop browsers. Most major platforms have created mobile applications that allow players to complete all major functions of DFS betting. This makes playing not only faster but more convenient. Based on what we saw, we recommend the DraftKings app as the top choice for DFS betting.

Taxes on Daily Fantasy Winnings: Legal Overview

In New York, all gambling winnings are fully taxable at a rate of 25% if the prize won is over $600 or more if the amount is 300 times the wager. State taxes consider gambling winnings to be classed as income and are taxed accordingly to residents’ tax classes. For more info, visit the website of the IRS or the New York Department of Taxation and Finance.

Upcoming Regulation Changes to Be Aware Of

It could be some time before there is a definitive ruling on whether or not lawmakers overstepped the bounds in their movements to make DFS legal in 2016. At the heart of the issue is whether or not the state’s constitution was violated, and if this is the case, some may seek to block operators from being active in New York.

In the worst-case scenario, we believe that even if the legalization efforts of 2016 are found to have been unconstitutional and DFS blocked in New York, it will only be a matter of time before the constitution is amended and DFS is continued. DFS activities currently bring in over $5 million in tax revenue for New York, and with such a deep culture of sports fandom and a love for playing DFS, we think that pressure from state players will be enough to revive the fight and get DFS legalization over the finish line once and for all.

Daily Fantasy Guides for Nearby States

• New Jersey
• Pennsylvania
• Connecticut
• Rhode Island