There is absolutely no question that the biggest area of growth right now in fantasy football is with the explosion of Daily Fantasy Contests. With several top sites out there already and more entering this space each day, Footballguys is expanding the coverage in this arena to give Footballguys Insiders exclusive coverage of the latest news and information of Daily Fantasy Football.
Over the course of this football season, we will talk about numerous aspects of Daily Fantasy Football. From articles on these sites, strategies to win daily contests, bankroll (money management) strategy, different league and game types, signup and reload bonuses, players to target each week and even contests that look to be undersubscribed ("overlays"), we will cover it all. Welcome to the one-stop shop for Daily coverage.
Please note that even though the NFL has weekly Thursday games and DFS sites have contests that start on Thursdays, in general we will be looking at the majority of the contests and DFS games that do not begin until Sunday. Our weekly coverage does include Thursday DFS information if you are looking to get a jump on the DFS action for the week with the first game on Thursday.
INDUSTRY NEWS
StarFantasyLeagues receives investment
Yet another investment announcement in the Daily Fantasy Sports industry, as Star Fantasy received an investment (undisclosed amount) from the private equity firm International Investment and Underwriting (IIU). This comes on the heels of recent investments in FanDuel and DraftKings, showing that more and more investment money is heading into the DFS space. The full press release is available here.
New and Improved Lineup Management at FanDuel
Innovation continues in the DFS space - not just with new sites, but also new interfaces and ways to manage teams. Even FanDuel is making improvements in how to manage lineups with their beta lineup tool. This tool can be extremely helpful for daily players who have either multiple lineups and contests or last minute changes to make after injury reports and inactives are announced. Adjusting multiple lineups is much easier with this new visual interface:
Figure 1 - FanDuel Beta Lineup Tool
Many sites still have a long way to go as far as interfaces and making the user experience friendlier, but it is good to see that leaders like FanDuel are still looking to make improvements. I think this new lineup tool is a big step forward in that direction.
DFS LESSON OF THE WEEK - GPP TOURNAMENT SELECTION
So here is a good question – how do you pick out the right Guaranteed Prize Pool (GPP) Tournament to enter?
First, let’s make a few assumptions:
- No overlay situations. We cannot assume that a given GPP Tournament will be undersold, so when you choose one, make the first assumption you have be that the tournament is full.
- You aren’t always going to win. Shocking, I know, but most of the payouts are only to the top 10-20% finishers. Even if you are twice as good as everyone else, you still will lose about 60-75% of the time.
- Determine the “Last winner” line – meaning figure out what place you need to finish to get any payout. For example, DraftKings has their NFL Sunday Million tournament that pays 8,500 people out of 42,000 entries. That means you better finish in the Top 20% to get something for your efforts. Most GPP Tourneys are in the 15-20% range, and even lower if it is more of a giveaway or qualifier tournament (giving you a prize or entry into an even bigger tournament).
- If you do win, consider four levels of winnings – “last winner”, Top 5%, Top 1% and Top 0.1% finish. Note that a Top 0.1% finish is only applicable in really big (over 2,000 players) contests – otherwise, you have to win the whole thing.
With these rules in effect, we can evaluate some of the bigger GPP Tourneys at FanDuel and DraftKings that were around in Week 3 (and also the PFC Million Tourney at FanDuel in Week 4):
| FANDUEL | Entries | Fee | Last Winner | Last Win % | Last Win $ | Last Win Mult. |
| $350K Sunday NFL Kickoff | 40229 | $10 | 6764 | 16.8% | $25 | 2.5 |
| $250k Sunday NFL Rush | 57471 | $5 | 9680 | 16.8% | $12.5 | 2.5 |
| $50K Sunday NFL Scramble | 5746 | $10 | 1044 | 18.2% | $25 | 2.5 |
| $45K Sunday NFL Spike | 10344 | $5 | 1946 | 18.8% | $12.5 | 2.5 |
| $100K Sunday NFL Snap | 57471 | $2 | 9550 | 16.6% | $5 | 2.5 |
| $50K Sunday NFL Dive | 57471 | $1 | 9836 | 17.1% | $2.5 | 2.5 |
| $30K Sunday NFL Safety | 17241 | $2 | 3000 | 17.4% | $5 | 2.5 |
| $20K Sunday NFL Squib | 22986 | $1 | 3940 | 17.1% | $2.5 | 2.5 |
| $1.25M Sunday Million | 57471 | $25 | 11490 | 20.0% | $60 | 2.4 |
| $300K Sunday NFL Bomb | 13793 | $25 | 2253 | 16.3% | $60 | 2.4 |
| $90K Sunday NFL Touchdown | 2022 | $50 | 345 | 17.1% | $125 | 2.5 |
| $90K Sunday NFL Blitz | 999 | $100 | 177 | 17.7% | $250 | 2.5 |
| Playboy PFC $1M Qualifier | 28735 | $5 | 2675 | 9.3% | $12.5 | 2.5 |
Table 1: FanDuel GPP Tournaments – “Last Winner” Metric
| DRAFTKINGS | Entries | Fee | Last Winner | Last Win % | Last Win $ | Last Win Mult. |
| NFL Sunday Million | 42000 | $27 | 8500 | 20.2% | $50 | 1.9 |
| NFL $150K Hail Mary | 14250 | $12 | 2850 | 20.0% | $20 | 1.7 |
| $2.5M King of the Beach | 6175 | $12 | 310 | 5.0% | $20 | 1.7 |
| NFL $50K Super Booster | 1111 | $50 | 50 | 4.5% | $1000 | 20 |
Table 2: DraftKings GPP Tournaments – “Last Winner” Metric
Looking at these two tables, we can see a few common threads:
- FanDuel pays out about 2.5x the entry fee if you finish in the Top 16-19% in most GPPs, but if you shop around you might be able to reach 20%.
- DraftKings pays out sooner (20% or slightly more) but the dollar amount is lower (1.7 to 1.9x entry fee).
- Specialty GPPs (Qualifiers, “Super Boosters”, etc.) raise the bar significantly for the “last winner”, usually requiring at least a Top 9% finish to receive any payouts.
Now, to go further, I looked at the same contests and the higher win line metrics (Top 5%, 1%, 0.1%):
| FANDUEL | Place to Finish in Top 5% |
5% Win | 5% Win Mult. |
Place to Finish in Top 1% |
1% Win | 1% Win Mult. |
Place to Finish in Top 0.1% |
0.1% Win | 0.1% Win Mult. |
| $350K Sunday NFL Kickoff | 2011 | $40 | 4 | 402 | 70 | 7 | 40 | $200 | 20 |
| $250k Sunday NFL Rush | 2873 | $15 | 3 | 574 | 60 | 12 | 57 | $150 | 30 |
| $50K Sunday NFL Scramble | 287 | $30 | 3 | 57 | 80 | 8 | 5 | $750 | 75 |
| $45K Sunday NFL Spike | 517 | $15 | 3 | 103 | 30 | 6 | 10 | $200 | 40 |
| $100K Sunday NFL Snap | 2873 | $8 | 4 | 574 | 10 | 5 | 57 | $100 | 50 |
| $50K Sunday NFL Dive | 2873 | $3 | 3 | 574 | 7 | 7 | 57 | $30 | 30 |
| $30K Sunday NFL Safety | 862 | $6 | 3 | 172 | 20 | 10 | 17 | $100 | 50 |
| $20K Sunday NFL Squib | 1149 | $3 | 3 | 229 | 8 | 8 | 22 | $40 | 40 |
| $1.25M Sunday Million | 2873 | $75 | 3 | 574 | 175 | 7 | 57 | $500 | 20 |
| $300K Sunday NFL Bomb | 689 | $100 | 4 | 137 | 175 | 7 | 13 | $1000 | 40 |
| $90K Sunday NFL Touchdown | 101 | $150 | 3 | 20 | 500 | 10 | 2 | $7500 | 150 |
| $90K Sunday NFL Blitz | 49 | $400 | 4 | 9 | 1000 | 10 | 1 | $12000 | 120 |
| Playboy PFC $1M Qualifier | 1436 | $12.5 | 2.5 | 287 | 15 | 3 | 28 | $70 | 14 |
Table 3: FanDuel Top Tier Payouts in GPPs
| DRAFTKINGS | Place to Finish in Top 5% |
5% Win | 5% Win Mult. |
Place to Finish in Top 1% |
1% Win | 1% Win Mult. |
Place to Finish in Top 0.1% |
0.1% Win | 0.1% Win Mult. |
| NFL Sunday Million | 2100 | $100 | 3.7 | 420 | 200 | 7.4 | 42 | $800 | 29.6 |
| NFL $150K Hail Mary | 712 | $40 | 3.33 | 142 | 90 | 7.5 | 14 | $400 | 33.3 |
| $2.5M King of the Beach | 308 | $20 | 1.67 | 61 | 30 | 2.5 | 6 | $200 | 16.7 |
| NFL $50K Super Booster | 55 | n/a | 0 | 11 | 500 | 10 | 1 | $800 | 16 |
Table 4: DraftKings Top Tier Payouts in GPPs
Looking at Tables 3 and 4, we can see a few common threads:
- FanDuel pays out about 4-5x the entry fee if you finish in the Top 5% in most GPPs, while DraftKings is in the 3-4x range.
- FanDuel pays out about 5-7x the entry fee if you finish in the Top 1% in most GPPs, but if you shop around, you could get in the double digit range of 10-12x the entry fee. DraftKings is more aligned to the 7-8x range.
- The top, top tier (0.1% finishes) are only significant to discuss in very large (>1,000 entry) tournaments – otherwise you are talking about a Top 10 finish or even winning the whole thing. For very large contests, a 0.1% finish should place you in the 20-40x entry fee range at both FanDuel and DraftKings, although if you shop around you might find a 50x return.
So the takeaway here is to shop around, and look at all different sizes of contests. It is great to shoot for those ultimate prizes, but if you really want to maximize your returns in these contests, do some of the math as described above and look at what it takes to finish both in the money and also to achieve 3x, 4x or even 5-10x on your initial investment.
DAILY CONTENT AROUND FOOTBALLGUYS.COM
NFL WEEK 4
Two weeks down for the NFL season, and we have had some big, big contests in DFS so far - and the fun continues. Let's dig into some of the big contests out there. If there are any that I miss, please drop me an email (pasquino@footballguys.com) and I will update this article.
FANDUEL - WEEK 4 BIG CONTESTS
All of these contests can be found in the lobby at FanDuel.
FanDuel Presents the Playboy Championship
This year our friends at FanDuel are offering you the chance to go on the trip of a lifetime to the world famous Playboy Mansion in Los Angeles! You and 75 finalists will compete for $1,000,000 in prizes, including a $150,000 first place prize as you sit poolside with Hef at this year’s hottest fantasy football event.
Not only that, they’ll be running contests for 25 additional trip-only packages to maximize your chances of getting in on this exclusive party. That’s 100 chances to win!
Qualifiers start at only $5 to enter, seats to this epic event will be going fast, so enter one of the qualifiers and punch your ticket now!
Click to enter PFC $5 Qualifier
Click to enter PFC $50 Qualifier
Click to enter PFC $535 Qualifier
Outlast the competition and you’ll find yourself on a luxury vacation in Las Vegas at FanDuel’s World Fantasy Football Championship! The contest is simple: In the first round, the top 75% of entrants advance to the next round. The top 75% from round 2 advance to round 3, etc until the payout rounds that will be giving away $300,000 in prizes to the top 250 places. Survive until the final round and you’re going to Vegas to take your shot at Fantasy Football immortality!
There are satellites for this contest running for a little as $2 right now! That’s a chance at Fantasy Football greatness for only $2. You can also buy-in directly anytime, round one is this Sunday and entries are going fast so get in now!
$1.25M NFL Sunday Million: First Prize of $100,000 - $25 Entry
FanDuel upped the ante for Week 3 with a $1.25M contest. With over 54,000 seats for this contest, a $25 entry could give someone a $120,000 prize by next Tuesday morning! Almost 20% of all players will earn a prize, so this one-week contest is certainly worth a shot for serious DFS players.
The World Fantasy Football Championships: 1 Day, 4 Massive Contests, Over $10 Million in Prizes. Qualifying contests run from Week 1 to Week 13.
With a $2,000,000 1st place prize, $7,000,000 in finalist cash prizes, $3,000,000 in runner up prizes, a private jet ride home for the winner, and an unbelievable 3 day weekend in Vegas, this is the fantasy football event of the year. 100 finalists will win a luxurious trip to the December 14th finals at the Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas, where they will be treated to 3 nights of parties, a Saturday surprise, and their chance at fantasy football immortality.
Multiple FFFC Qualifiers will run each week. Win a FFFC Qualifier, and you win one of 100 prize packages to Las Vegas for the FFFC final. We'll also be running qualifiers which award more than one prize package, and a last chance Super Qualifier in Week 13.
DRAFTKINGS - WEEK 4 BIG CONTESTS
Three big contests return to action at DraftKings this week:
NFL Sunday Million. $1,000,000 in total prizes. $27 to enter. $100,000 to first.
Note that the NFL Sunday Million finished last week as an Overlay, meaning it has positive expected returns (+EV) for players as there were not as many players as expected - a bonus for those who join. That condition is very likely to arise again this week with the $2.2M contest in play, even though that contest does not start until Week 5.
NFL Sunday 400 Grand. $400,000 in total prizes. $200 to enter. $50,000 to first.
NFL $150K Hail Mary. $150,000 in total prizes. $12 to enter, $20,000 to first.
Future Big Contests:
"Four months, four millionaires": Four contests where the top winner will win at least $1 Million. Weeks 5, 11, 15 and 16 of the NFL season. Direct entry is $27, but you can earn your way in for as little as a quarter - yes, $0.25. (Odds are certainly much steeper at $0.25 vs. $27, but hard to get more action for a quarter!).
Are you interested in winning $1 Million Dollars in a single week? DraftKings hopes that you are.
NFL $2.2M Millionaire Maker - $1,000,000 to First Place. Welcome to the $2,200,000 guaranteed Millionaire Maker, where you can turn $27 into $1 Million! First place will become an instant millionaire, and over 15,000 spots are paid out in total. Multiple lineups per player are permitted. Will you be this season's first millionaire? Enter now! Note that this contest is now available, but will not be open for lineup selections until next week.
One other important piece of information for Daily Fantasy Football players:
The FanDuel iPhone App is here!
You asked for it and we delivered. Introducing the new FanDuel mobile app! Everyone already loves the excitement of playing weekly and daily fantasy sports on FanDuel, but you’ve never seen it like this. The same sleek design, and easy to use functionality you’re used to on FanDuel now in the palm of your hand!
You’ll have the same ease of entering the contests you want, the team building and editing abilities you need, and NOW with a completely new way to enjoy the live scoring you love! That’s right, a new live scoring page to enjoy the excitement of FanDuel anywhere. Check it out and get in on the action by downloading the FREE app today!
Be sure to use promo code FBG2014
Questions, suggestions and comments are always welcome to pasquino@footballguys.com.