The Dallas Cowboys colorful owner Jerry Jones defended his investment in Daily Fantasy Sports site DraftKings Sunday.
DraftKings and its rival FanDuel have come under fire of late by various state Attorney Generals, gaming commissions and lotteries claiming Daily Fantasy Sports is nothing more than illegal online gambling in disguise. DraftKings in particular has also been mired by insider trading allegations. The company and its legal counsel deny any wrongdoing.
“From my perspective, anything that follows the rules, that causes and creates more interest and more fan participation, I’m really for,” Jones said to ESPN. “So I’m a supporter and that’s the rules that we’ll test — is put your money where your mouth is.”
Jones is not the only NFL owner who has invested heavily in DraftKings. New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft is also backing the company.
28 NFL teams have deals with either DraftKings or FanDuel. In light of the recent scandals, some have raised concerns over NFL players potentially compromising games through their participation in DFS contests.
“I don’t think DraftKings or [competitor] FanDuel in any way compromise our players on the football field because it’s all fantasy,” Jones said. “It has no bearing on the outcome of the game at all.”
– Aaron Goldstein, Gambling911.com