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Fantasy Sports Betting USA 2020

Fantasy sports betting has been around for some time. Friends and family would get together, forming their own leagues and creating their own teams. Ultimately, it made watching whichever sports they enjoyed more entertaining. Fantasy sports betting logo

Fast track to today and fantasy sports betting is a global multi-million-dollar mainstream industry. Every major sport in America has a fantasy league. Millions of people take part in daily, weekly, and season long fantasy sports leagues.

Looking to jump into the live action entertainment and make some money? Read our comprehensive guide below. We’ll walk you through how exactly fantasy sports betting works, the types of bets you can place, the sports that have fantasy betting, and some tips and strategies.

Best Fantasy Sports Betting Sites

We’ve rounded up the best sites for fantasy sports betting for US players.

#1

$200 Bonus

98% Payout

Rating: 4.9/5

98% Payout

$200 Bonus 98% Payout - Rating: 4.9/5
#2

$250 Bonus

97% Payout

Rating: 4.9/5

97.1% Payout

$250 Bonus 98% Payout - Rating: 4.9/5
#3

$300 Bonus

97% Payout

Rating: 4.9/5

97% Payout

$300 Bonus 98% Payout - Rating: 4.9/5
#4

50% Bonus

97% Payout

Rating: 4.9/5

98% Payout

50% Bonus 98% Payout - Rating: 4.9/5
#5

50% Bonus

97% Payout

Rating: 4.9/5

98% Payout

50% Bonus 98% Payout - Rating: 4.9/5

What you’ll find in this fantasy sports betting guide:

What are Fantasy Sports?

Essentially, this is when you create a virtual (or fantasy) team using real players from that sport. The teams then compete against each other, where, in real life, the players play against each other. The success of your team depends on how these players are performing in real life.

Now that we’ve looked at fantasy sports in general, let’s take a look at the betting behind it.

How Does Fantasy Sports Betting Work?

The fact that there’s a betting industry behind fantasy sports is not surprising – where there’s competition, there’s betting. There are a few ways you can bet on your fantasy sports team. Let’s take a look at the most common options US bettors have.

  • Firstly, you can pay to enter an already existing league. These will already have a number of opponents and they run for fixed periods of time from a round to the whole season.
  • Secondly, a fantasy sports team owner can go head-to-head with a single opponent. Both bet an equal amount and the one who has a team with the highest points wins the pool.
  • In terms of winning the league, there are a few ways the cash prize is paid out. Either the owner of the highest scoring team gets the entire prize pool, or it’s split between those whose teams finished in the top positions.
  • All bettors have to do is sign up to a fantasy sports betting site, or get a friend to introduce you to a league.

Types of Fantasy Sports Bets

The types of fantasy sports bets, or contests, are varied. Knowing which one to play depends on how long you’ve been playing fantasy sports. The level of variety is bound to overwhelm beginners and our list won’t even include all the various betting options out there. However, we’ll be taking a look at the more common and popular contests.

  • Big Tournaments: these have large player fields and a huge cash prize at the end. Generally, these tournaments are organized by fantasy sports betting sites. However, there’s usually an entry fee ranging from $1 to $100.
  • Double Up Games or 50/50: in this type of contest, the prize pool is split with the top half of the field.
  • Head-to-Head Tournaments: this is when one player competes directly with another player. Mainly seasoned players are found in this type of contest.
  • Pick Em: players choose from up to eight athletes for one position. The aim of this contest is to keep selecting the best from a group until they’ve built their entire fantasy sports team.
  • Pre-determined Bankroll: here you have to buy athletes by using a pre-determined bankroll. You can’t spend more than the given bankroll so you have to be strategic about how you spend.
  • Snake Drafting: every person in a league takes their turn drafting teams, each player picking an athlete one at a time. In the next round, they reverse picking order, giving all players a fair chance to pick the perfect team.
  • Triple, Quadruple, and Quintuple Contests: players are able to triple, quadruple, or quintuple their original entry fee. When it comes to distributing the prize pool, in a triple contest the top third gets the prize money; the top 25% gets the money in a quadruple contest; and the top fifth wins in the quintuple contest.

Popular Fantasy Gambling Leagues

fantasy football betting draft table

There are thousands of fantasy sports betting leagues around. It is just all about finding the right one for you in the sport you enjoy. Let’s take a look at some of the most popular sports in America and their fantasy leagues.

Fantasy Baseball

With the 162-game long season, the Major League Baseball (MLB) fantasy league requires dedication from its players. With the rise of platforms like FanDuel and their daily fantasy sports offering, it’s become much easier to be a part of a baseball fantasy sports betting league.

Fantasy Basketball

Much newer to the fantasy sports league, basketball is catching up thanks to daily fantasy basketball contests. The National Basketball Association (NBA) is the most popular basketball league to follow for both American and international bettors.

Fantasy Football

The National Football League (NFL) is by far the most popular fantasy sports league around. With football action happening all-year round, there are ample opportunities for fantasy sports. Players can pick from daily matches to season-long tournaments.

Fantasy Golf

Golf is one of the oldest fantasy sports around. The first fantasy draft was organized in the 1950s in America. It’s an easy contest game with weekly games and major PGA tournaments. It’s a quick and easy game to join.

Fantasy Hockey

Those interested in fantasy hockey leagues have the pick of season-long tournaments and daily picks. Although a game that’s primarily from in North America, other countries in the world enjoy following the action and taking part in hockey fantasy sports leagues.

Fantasy Soccer

Lastly, we’ve got fantasy soccer leagues. Although not as big as the NFL or NBA, Major League Soccer (MLS) is full of daily contents. Furthermore, American bettors can follow the action of other soccer leagues across the world.

See our guides on fantasy sports:

Gambling Tips and Strategy for Fantasy Sports

woman with an light bulb moment

There are certain tips and strategies that can make your experience of fantasy sports betting easy and exciting.

  • Beginners should stick with low-stakes games with large player fields. This increases their chances of winning.
  • Remember that leagues will have differing rules so you’ll have to read up on what those are. Then pick leagues whose rules you are comfortable with.
  • If you think you’ll struggle with keeping focused on a season long league, opt for the daily fantasy sports leagues. Those are far more interesting and payout more quickly than those 162-game leagues.
  • Adjust your strategy to match the type of contest you’re taking part in.

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