All About DraftKings: Should You Play?
In 2021, DraftKings is a pretty common word in most sports bars and venues. But what exactly is DraftKings? Is it gambling? And should you be playing? The answers to these questions are often elusive because the company itself is focused on one thing and one thing only, and that is making money.
Before you go out and download DraftKings, take a look at the overview below. This way you can make a fully informed decision on if you want to use the app for sports betting or not, or if your money may be better used elsewhere.
What Is DraftKings?
DraftKings is most widely known as a fantasy sports contest, where you will get together with a group of your friends, draft teams made up of players from real sports, and watch throughout the year to see if your team does well, or poorly, overall as a result of your picks. Currently, they offer leagues in major league baseball, hockey, football, basketball, and golf.
The company was started in 2012 in Boston, Massachusetts in one of the founder’s homes. The product the company was selling caught on quickly, and before long they found themselves receiving venture capital funds and finding customers from as far away as the United Kingdom. Unfortunately, at the time of its founding, online sports betting was still illegal in several states in the US. And as of the writing of this article, there are still quite a few states where the app is illegal.
How Does DraftKings Work?
First and foremost, if you want to play DraftKings properly, you need to gather a group of coworkers, family, or friends. Then everyone will need to provide a specified buy in. Most groups that use the website decide on a buy-in of at least $50 per person for the entire season, but there are stories of leagues requiring buy ins upwards of $1000 per person. Once the buy in has been decided, each player creates an account and pays the buy in. The DraftKings website then takes 10% of this buy in as their proceeds, the rest of the buy in is then placed in a pot with all the other players in your league, and will be paid out to the winner at the end of the season.
What Are The Pros And Cons Of DraftKings?
One thing that is great about DraftKings is that it does create an amazing social environment for you and your friends as you watch the sport of your choice all season to see how your team is doing, however, there are a lot of cons as well.
The main downside to using DraftKings is that, unlike a traditional sportsbook, your bet of DraftKings is a season long bet, and you must put in a lot of weekly effort to win. This can be especially annoying if you are in a league where only $50 is placed per person. This means you could be working hard all season for as little as $500, talk about a waste of time. Not only that, but taking 10% of everyone’s bet in your league is a huge cut—you and your friends would probably rather play without the app and save your money, especially if the pot for your league isn’t very large to begin with. Additionally, if all of your friends want to start a league for $50 per person, but you want to start a league at $500 per person, you will have to come to an agreement before you can play. This means that every player must be willing to risk the same amount of money. So if you feel that $50 per person for an entire season isn’t enough risk and reward, you would have to work to find a different league that fits your financial needs, and this is easier said than done.
DraftKings Legal Issues
Besides not being a very good use of time and money, DraftKings, and other fantasy sports leagues apps have found themselves the subject of numerous lawsuits. Fantasy league apps are only allowed to operate because they are considered games of skill rather than games of chance in a loophole in the law. But this is a very slim loophole, and almost every year another state will start a new lawsuit against the app. This means that DraftKings is very unstable in most states—because at any minute a lawsuit could make it illegal, and this could result in you and your friends losing all the hard work you put into your league at any time during the season.
Not to mention that DraftKings has come under fire for several advertisements that were deemed misleading. And a company that has to rely on misleading advertising to get customers is never a good company to put your money into.
Should You Play DraftKings?
Honestly, if you are looking for an outlet for sports betting, and a way to make some money, it’s probably better to skip DraftKings. This is because the work involved is not worth the money, and you will have to wait all season to possibly see a return on your investment. You are much better off betting on sports using a regular sportsbook rather than having to worry about checking an app all week for an entire season.
Instead, you should look into an online sportsbook like the one MintDice.com plans to offer. These are some of the most convenient ways for you to bet on each and every game individually and be paid out on a more regular basis. This also makes it easier to hone your betting strategy as you will get immediate feedback rather than waiting all season to see if your score is high enough to win.
Besides, with an online sportsbook there are many more choices when it comes to betting, and typically less legal issues as the law is clearer as to what is legal and what isn’t. This means you have less of a chance of having to start all over in the middle of the season. You also won’t have others holding you back as you can bet as much or as little as you like on the sport your desire. And remember, DraftKings doesn’t cover all sports, one that is notably missing is soccer, and there is a lot of money to be made in the world’s favorite sport.
Overall, while DraftKings does have its place in society when it comes to the social aspect of sports betting, generally you are better off to use an actual online sports book to try and make money off of your favorite sports. This way others can’t hold you back, nor will you have to wait all season to see some return on your investment. Just remember that gambling is inherently risky and you should never bet money you can’t afford to lose. For more tips on how to bet sports, visit MintDice.com
