DraftKings Reignmakers Contests Shut Down in Pennsylvania, For Now

DraftKings Reignmakers, a day by day fantasy soccer sport utilizing NFT participant playing cards, simply discovered it should shut down in Pennsylvania.

That’s the message that DraftKings Reignmakers relayed to gamers in a Discord channel earlier than Colts vs. Broncos on Thursday Night time Soccer. The sport had been working for the reason that summer time.

Common day by day fantasy sports activities contests by accepted operators stay absolutely authorized in PA, so why is Reignmakers getting the axe? Almost definitely, it has to do with the elements of the contests that make them so distinctive.

What’s DraftKings Reignmakers

DraftKings first introduced its foray into the digital collectibles and NFT ecosystem with particulars about DraftKings Market in July 2021. DraftKings Reignmakers is an offshoot of Market and permits gamers to make use of a day by day fantasy soccer lineup made up of a set of NFT participant playing cards.

Gamers can begin buying playing cards by free starter packs, becoming a member of pack drops, bidding on playing cards at public sale, profitable them by way of Reignmakers contests or buying playing cards on DraftKings’ secondary market.

The distinction between these and common DraftKings fantasy contests is that Reignmakers doesn’t have a wage cap.

Past that, the purpose system and guidelines are just like commonplace day by day fantasy contests as soon as a roster has been assembled. There aren’t any entry charges supplied gamers have sufficient playing cards to area a staff.

Reignmaker playing cards have a collection of properties that determines the worth of playing cards and impacts the contests gamers can enter. There are 5 tiers for playing cards: Core, Uncommon, Elite, Legendary, and Reignmaker.

Lengendary and Reignmaker playing cards are the most scarce and provides gamers entry to extra unique contests.

DFS contests stay absolutely authorized in Pennsylvania

Day by day fantasy sports activities turned explicitly authorized and controlled in Pennsylvania with the passage of a playing growth legislation in 2017. There are at the moment 9 DFS operators in PA, although most of them herald minimal income.

DraftKings (and FanDuel) make up the vast majority of DFS motion within the state.

In FY 2021/22, DraftKings’ DFS app introduced in $15.0 million in adjusted gross income (AGR), in comparison with FanDuel’s reported $11.6 million in AGR.

Why did DraftKings Reignmakers contests get banned in PA?

Within the Discord message, DraftKings defined that it had consulted with the PGCB earlier than having to close Reignmakers down in PA “till additional discover.”

Nevertheless, the corporate can nonetheless provide common fantasy contests. This means that the Reignmakers/NFT variation of DFS contests is totally different sufficient as to require separate approval by the PGCB.

Of their “Remaining Rulemaking” laws for DFS, the PGCB defines fantasy contests as:

A web based fantasy or simulated sport or contest with an entry payment and a prize or award during which all the following apply:

(A) The worth of all prizes or awards supplied to profitable contributors is established and made identified to contributors upfront of the competition and the worth will not be decided by the variety of contributors or the quantity of any charges paid by these contributors.

(B) All profitable outcomes replicate the relative data and ability of contributors and are decided by accrued statistical outcomes of the efficiency of people, together with athletes within the case of sports activities occasions.

(C) The profitable consequence will not be based mostly on the rating, level unfold or efficiency of a single precise staff or mixture of groups, or solely on a single efficiency of a person athlete or participant in a single precise occasion. [Emphasis added by PlayPennsylvania.]

From this description, one might see a possible battle with Reignmakers contests due to the requirement of an “entry payment.”

No entry payment, no cube in PA?

In DraftKings’ personal rationalization of Reignmakers contests:

Query: Is there an entry payment for Reignmakers fantasy soccer contests?

Reply: No. Initially, all contests might be free to hitch supplied you personal sufficient eligible playing cards to finish a lineup. Every contest has entry guidelines tied to the rarity degree and different properties of the Reignmakers playing cards you personal.

The NFT variation may not match the normal/accepted contest definition due to the requirement that “profitable outcomes replicate the relative data and ability of contributors.” Reignmakers contests in some half rely upon what NFT participant playing cards an individual owns.

Whereas the modern sort of fantasy contest that DraftKings gives is probably going common amongst sports activities followers who’re additionally into digital collectibles, the sport might be off the board in Pennsylvania for now.

Per PA gaming legislation, any new form of playing contest or sport would wish to undergo the approval course of with the PGCB earlier than going reside to the general public. That course of can take a while, however it’s potential Reignmakers might ultimately return to PA.

Within the meantime, common fantasy contests together with DraftKings PA sportsbook and DraftKings on-line on line casino are nonetheless operational in Pennsylvania.

Valerie Cross contributed to this text.