Daily fantasy sports operator joins Washington DC lobbying group

One of the leading operators in the booming online daily fantasy sports sector, FanDuel, has joined the Internet Association, a trade group that represents dozens of technology giants from Yahoo and Google to Facebook and Twitter, reports The Hill newspaper.

Although fantasy sports is largely exempt from wider federal bans on online gambling, like traditional sports betting, its management is taking no chances on political change and seeks to be represented in the political environment.

Company CEO Nigel Eccles said in a statement this week:

“As FanDuel continues to grow and redefine how sports fans play fantasy sports on the Internet, it was critical that we joined the Internet Association to participate and engage on important policy issues affecting Internet companies.”

Along with other sites such as DraftKings, FanDuel has turned fantasy sports into an industry worth millions of dollars, and boasts that it pays out $20 million a week. Based in New York, it has 125 employees and funding of $88 million to date.

“FanDuel’s perspective will be a great asset as we continue to work together to advocate for pro-Internet policies that foster economic growth and empower users,” Internet Association President Michael Beckerman said in a statement welcoming the company.

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