Picking athlete lineups and pitting them against friends or colleagues has been a popular pastime for decades.
Fantasy sports shifted online in 2009, with the emergence of daily fantasy sports (DFS) sites. These allow real money contests where players could pit their picking skills against others across the country.
New Hampshire is one of a handful of states to legalize DFS games explicitly. Bill HB 580, which passed in 2017, allows NH residents to enjoy fantasy contests and tax the operators.
This page covers all you need to know to enjoy daily fantasy sports in the Granite State.
You’ll find information on DFS, site operators and the practical aspects of depositing funds. First up, more details on the legal situation, along with the new law that allows sports betting in New Hampshire.
Bill HB 580 was signed into law on July 18, 2017, and became effective immediately.
Daily fantasy sports has been available in New Hampshire for many years; however, this bill acknowledges that these contests are legal.
Also, it put protections in place for DFS players. These include ensuring funds are segregated, a ban on employees entering contests and a registration requirement for the operators.
HB 580 doesn’t introduce any taxation or registration fee requirements. As in most states, players must declare gambling wins on their income tax filings. The Lottery Commission oversees daily fantasy sports in New Hampshire.
More recently, bill H 480 was signed into law, which sets up a licensing framework for 10 online sportsbooks and five retail sportsbook outlets. These sportsbooks will allow wagering on pro and college sports, as well as international fixtures.
DraftKings and FanDuel, which are also the two biggest DFS operators, were among the brands that declared an interest in obtaining a sports betting license. DraftKings is launching a full sports betting app in New Hampshire.
If you already know how DFS contests work, skip below to read the details of the types you can join.
Even those new to DFS know that neighborhood and office pools have been around for decades. Coworkers and friends compare the performances of athletes, with points assigned based on the on-field action.
Swaps help keep things fresh. This type of contest often lasted for a full season, with (usually small amounts) of pooled cash going to the winners.
What DFS sites do is bring these contests online, and make them quicker. Most contests only last a day or a weekend. With online contests, you can play against people, beyond your cubicle walls, from across the US.
This format allows for many various forms of contests. The main distinction is between cash games (one-on-one contests) and tournaments, where many people compete for big prizes.
The starting point of all the contests is to pick a lineup of players.
You receive a salary cap, and then choose a roster that is based on the pro league of your choice.
Online contests mean you can pick multiple rosters, allowing for both small variations and completely new lineups. You then enter contests for real money. These contests range from low stakes of $1-$2 to more money where you’ll be competing against more experienced players.
Once you create a roster, you can choose to enter various contests. Here are the core ideas:
If you want to play with friends or colleagues using DFS sites, then you can set up leagues. These can be based on a single gameday (or weekend) or last up to a full season.
You’ll have the flexibility to set up the entry fees and payouts as you want. Furthermore, leagues and tournaments can be private or public.
Daily fantasy sports online are dominated by DraftKings and FanDuel, which control more than 95% of the market:
While there are smaller DFS sites, their scale makes them hard to beat in terms of game selection and prize pools. Alternatives include Yahoo! Sports and ScoreSeek.
FanDuel and DraftKings’ DFS sites will give new players $20 free to try out their contests.
There are also regular promotions for existing players, including a loyalty program. With only the two sites, competition has not been broad enough to require competitive deposit bonuses.
However, if the full sportsbook sites in other states are anything to go by, you’ll get a much bigger welcome bonus by registering at those first.
DFS players can link accounts in states where DFS and sports betting are both available.
Compared to the long list of deposit and withdrawal options at state-regulated sports betting sites, DFS sites are limited in terms of payment methods.
Two banking options are available at both of the leading DFS sites:
For withdrawals, you can choose PayPal or a check, which the site will mail to your home.
You need to avoid the pros to make a profit at DFS sites.
There are people on these sites who work the games full time. Their experience and insights into the mechanics of the games make them hard to beat, especially in the smaller cash game contests.
The picks you make are down to your judgment; however, you can ensure you don’t lose cash by avoiding making any of the following rookie errors:
Daily fantasy sports became legal in New Hampshire in 2017.
In 2020, the contest will include sports betting apps.
We have yet to see whether sports betting will reduce the number of DFS contests taking place.
The two most prominent DFS brands, DraftKings and FanDuel, will be among the first operators to launch sportsbooks.
In other states, it’s possible to link a DFS account with a sports betting account. This fluidity gives the best of both worlds: Access to cash games and tournaments, as well as the ability to bet on pro and college sports directly.