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<ul><li> <keyword id="9951693" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="fantasy-sports-platforms" source="Orion">Fantasy Sports Platforms</keyword> are on the rise in India with revenues tripling since FY20.</li><li>The next phase of <keyword id="1759314" type="General" weightage="70" keywordseo="fantasy-sports" source="Orion">fantasy sports</keyword> will have AI generated avatars competing.</li><li>Meta11, one such AI-generated FSP, aims to earn revenue via hosting <keyword id="1612654" type="General" weightage="30" keywordseo="original-content" source="Orion">original content</keyword> and streaming the games.</li></ul> The ICC World Cup fever is gripping the nation. Right from stock brokers to central bank governors, few are able to make a statement without a cricket pun. But that’s not where the fun stops. It’s also the season for cricket lovers to engage in fantasy gaming. It’s now a serious business with revenues tripling in the ongoing financial year from FY20, according to a Deloitte report. Seasoned cricket players are taking to this as well and former Sri Lankan skipper, Kumar Sangakkara, has co-founded one such company -- Meta11, an AI-generated fantasy sports platform, which aims to earn revenue via hosting original content and streaming the games. Business Insider India caught up with Sangakkara and Krishan Deegalla, CEO of Behaviol, the company focusing on bringing fantasy sports on the metaverse via Meta11. Edited excerpts. Question: Sangakkara, you are one of the few cricketers who is also a startup founder. Why does the business of fantasy sport interest you? Sangakkara: It came from a thinking that – how do we really give everyone access to cricket? Not everyone has the ability to pick up a bat and ball and play. But there's so much love for this sport. How do we actually make sure that cricket is for everyone? Web based gaming has a great opportunity for that. That was the starting point for this and then when we brainstormed and came up with the concept of Meta11. It has AI controlled avatars playing the sport, being able to predict outcomes and others. It's amazing to see so many people being able to live out their cricketing dreams on our platform, and that is the real key – cricket is for everyone. Cricket has such a strong emotional connection. Once you're a cricket fan, you're always a cricket fan. Who knows, some of our strategies and tactics and game moments might even influence tactical decision making later on in real life cricket as well. Question If I don't know the first thing about playing cricket other than watching it, am I a target audience? Sanga Anyone can play this because the avatars are artificial intelligence led. So, they learn as a player in the game. If you own your own avatar, you can expose your avatar to training to more match play, the more experience they get they learn on their own. It's a great tool to spread awareness about cricket as well in its globalisation drive. Question There are a lot of fantasy gaming apps in India. How do you differentiate yourself? Sanga Our game is so simple to log in, and you play the game and you get rewards for playing not for paying. Our tech platform, our avatars, our digital creations are cutting edge and industry leading in terms of cricket games out there. So we are very differentiated and we want to keep to that model. Question Do you have any plans to introduce match-wise games like normal fantasy sports? Krishan We want to see how we can connect the digital worlds and the physical, the real cricket. There is an opportunity for us to bring that into play. Where in the game, you can create a super avatar, or super digital player. You can pick five players out of both squads. And if that player does well in real life, you can earn points. We will never do just a fantasy app. It will always be linked to the game. Sanga It has the ability to drop real world cricketers into the game as well. A franchise team can play real world cricket and a fan community can play against each other on our platform. Question So, is there a possibility that one day we could be teammates on this platform? Sanga Absolutely. There is no doubt about that. You could play against me, you could play against other cricketers. Hopefully, you could play against your friends, your family members. Question Could you explain how you intend to increase engagement, and make it more interesting for the not-so-avid fan? Krishan To get the engagement, ownership is a key, allowing people to have that meaningful relationship with digital avatars. We have to train them, and create our own teams. We are also having tournaments, which will be team leagues to the platform exciting. Question The government has introduced 28% GST on fantasy gaming. Is that a cause for worry and will it eat into your earnings? Sanga I think that (28% GST) that's for the pay-to-play model. Ours is free-to-play. No user has to put his/her own money into playing. It's a very different kind of foundation we work on. Krishan If you look at traditional fantasy games, they rely on real games. There is no real content there. With us, we generate our own content. All the content that gets streamed, is owned by us. Now, we have a pathway to monetise this and give rewards back to the users. It's like organising real games. We can also expect sponsorship money, streaming rights and we can distribute it back to the community. Question You talked about streaming. If you could go into the monetisation aspect of it. Krishan We had 30,000 users on the first day. There is a huge appetite for advertising on alternative channels apart from Google, Facebook etc. That is why if you look at IPL TV rights it goes for billions of dollars. So, I think we will be a good alternative for that. The game is exciting. People will be able to relate to it and that means it will be engaging. With that we should be able to monetise it – through sponsorships and streaming. Question What’s the vision for Meta11 down the line? Krishan It is quite an evolution to have AI characters play cricket and allow people to own them. Within this framework, we have opportunities that even we have not thought about. I am sure there will be plenty of opportunities. The vision still remains to allow democratising the sport and give access to the masses. And to keep on making the platform interesting and scalable.

Can’t hit a ball? You can still play cricket in the metaverse

<ul class="summary-list"><li><keyword id="11972475" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="espn" source="Orion">ESPN</keyword> launched its first-ever fantasy women's basketball game ahead of the 2022 <keyword id="11896033" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="wnba" source="Orion">WNBA</keyword> season.</li><li>Fantasy has the potential to help new fans "really dig in and start loving the WNBA," an expert said.</li></ul><keyword id="11896034" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="womens-sports" source="Orion">Women's sports</keyword> are <a href="https://www.insider.com/ncaa-womens-gymnastics-championship-outdrew-nhl-after-abc-bump-2022-4">on the rise</a> <a href="https://www.insider.com/record-champions-league-crowds-womens-soccer-investment-lindsey-horan-2022-4">around the globe</a>.In the United States, the WNBA is embarking on a 2022 season that could potentially be the league's biggest season yet for a number of reasons. Fantasy women's basketball isn't the least of them, players and experts told Insider."I think it's huge," New York Liberty star <keyword id="11985176" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="sabrina-ionescu" source="Orion">Sabrina Ionescu</keyword> told Insider. "It's an opportunity for us to continue to grow our fan base."<div type="image" title="Powers motions to the crowd." height="1667" width="2500" msid="91380285" hostid="261"></div>For the first time ever, ESPN launched a season-long <a href="https://www.espn.com/fantasy/womens-basketball/">fantasy WNBA game</a> on its platform. Now, WNBA enthusiasts can round up some friends, draft their favorite players, and act as general managers of their very own fantasy teams comprised of the top women's basketball players on the planet.And for those who have never followed the league or only watched WNBA games on occasion, fantasy could serve as an ideal entry point into full-fledged fandom."One thing we know about fans across <keyword id="11893855" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="sports" source="Orion">sports</keyword> is that people who play <keyword id="13844868" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="fantasy-sports" source="Orion">fantasy sports</keyword> are more likely to watch games," <a href="https://www.espnfrontrow.com/2021/02/espn-senior-writer-fantasy-analyst-dr-andre-snellings-has-basketball-on-the-brain/">Dr. André Snellings</a>, an ESPN senior writer and <a href="https://www.espn.com/search/_/type/articles/q/andre%20snellings">authority on all things fantasy basketball</a>, told Insider. "They're going to watch more games, and not just their home teams, they're gonna watch all the games because every game has an impact on their fantasy teams. Even if the game's a blowout, somebody is gonna be putting up numbers that are gonna affect fantasy rosters."<div type="image" title="Minnesota Lynx superstar Sylvia Fowles." height="1591" width="2121" msid="91380286" hostid="261"></div>"I'm hoping that people who were already into the WNBA will enjoy it in a different way and the people that may not pay as much attention to WNBA but like fantasy sports use this as a vehicle to really dig in and start loving and enjoying all the stories," he added. "I guess time will tell how it works out, but I feel like it can't be anything but a positive."Some WNBA players told Insider they're already receiving some outsized attention from fantasy women's basketball. Even though she admitted to not knowing "too much about" how the game works, sixth-year Atlanta Dream forward <keyword id="13844866" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="monique-billings" source="Orion">Monique Billings</keyword> told Insider she's hearing from people who draft her in their leagues "all the time.""And people will tell my mom," she added with a laugh. "I'm like, 'Oh my gosh.' It's so random."<div type="image" title="Monique Billings." height="1770" width="2361" msid="91380287" hostid="261"></div>Regardless, Billings thinks "it's super cool" of ESPN to "get [the WNBA] involved" in the fantasy space because "any type of exposure for the W is good exposure."WNBA All-Star <keyword id="12258836" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="courtney-williams" source="Orion">Courtney Williams</keyword>, who rejoined the Connecticut Sun this season after two years with the Dream, seems to agree with her former teammate. When Insider first asked for her thoughts on the addition of fantasy women's basketball during Connecticut media day, Williams dismissed the question because she didn't "know about nothing fantasy at all."But once she confirmed that fantasy managers "pick you on a team and it's how you perform or something," Williams was quick to jump on the fantasy bandwagon.<div type="image" title="Courtney Williams." height="1616" width="2154" msid="91380288" hostid="261"></div>"Well, they need to always choose me," she said confidently. "Because I'm gonna go crazy."With more games on broadcast television, more promotional spots, and more avenues like fantasy through which viewers can engage with the league than in years past, the WNBA may just be on the precipice of a breakthrough. Players recognize as much, as well as the important role that breakthrough could play in shaping the next generation."All these little things really add up to little girls or whoever it is being able to look up to us and want to be where we're at one day," Ionescu said. "That's really what's important and how we're able to inspire and tell stories while we're playing. So it's really exciting the moves the W's making to try and get us on those platforms and continue to watch it grow."

Fantasy women's basketball has the potential to draw in new fans to the WNBA, players and experts say

<ul class="summary-list"><li><keyword id="11972475" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="espn" source="Orion">ESPN</keyword> launched its first-ever fantasy <keyword id="11964518" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="womens-basketball" source="Orion">women's basketball</keyword> game ahead of the 2022 <keyword id="11896033" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="wnba" source="Orion">WNBA</keyword> season.</li><li>Insider consulted ESPN fantasy basketball expert <a href="https://www.espnfrontrow.com/2021/02/espn-senior-writer-fantasy-analyst-dr-andre-snellings-has-basketball-on-the-brain/">Dr. André Snellings</a> on everything you need to know.</li></ul>For the first time ever, fans can play in a <keyword id="13844869" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="wnba-fantasy" source="Orion">WNBA fantasy</keyword> league.ESPN launched the first season-long <a href="https://www.espn.com/fantasy/womens-basketball/">fantasy women's basketball game</a> on its platform ahead of the WNBA's 2022 campaign, which tips off on Friday. Now, WNBA enthusiasts can round up some friends, draft their favorite players, and act as general managers of their very own fantasy teams comprised of the top women's basketball players on the planet. But just because you have a command of the WNBA landscape doesn't mean you're ready to dive right into WNBA fantasy. Likewise, having a handle on other ESPN fantasy offerings offers no guarantee that you'll thrive in the women's basketball realm.<div type="image" title="Minnesota Lynx superstar Sylvia Fowles." height="1591" width="2121" msid="91377726" hostid="261"></div>So Insider <a href="https://www.espn.com/fantasy/womens-basketball/story/_/id/33678398/fantasy-wnba-how-play-fantasy-women-basketball">consulted an expert</a>. <a href="https://www.espnfrontrow.com/2021/02/espn-senior-writer-fantasy-analyst-dr-andre-snellings-has-basketball-on-the-brain/">Dr. André Snellings</a> is an ESPN senior writer and <a href="https://www.espn.com/search/_/type/articles/q/andre%20snellings">authority on all things fantasy basketball</a>. In our interview, he explains the differences between WNBA fantasy and other <keyword id="13844868" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="fantasy-sports" source="Orion">fantasy sports</keyword>, breaks down the best strategies for successfully drafting and managing a WNBA fantasy team, and discusses the role ESPN fantasy women's basketball can play in helping the WNBA attract new fans.This interview has been slightly edited for length and clarity.If I'm someone who is jumping right into a league without much background knowledge, what are the key things to know ahead of a WNBA Fantasy season?You need to <a href="https://www.espn.com/fantasy/womens-basketball/story/_/id/33766984/fantasy-women-basketball-stats-make-fantasy-stars">know the scoring</a>, especially if this is your first experience in the fantasy <keyword id="11893855" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="sports" source="Orion">sports</keyword> space. You get a group of people and you each take turns picking real-life players to represent you on your fantasy basketball team. So if the average league size has six people in, you'll get five of your friends, and each of you will take turns going through and deciding who you want to be on your team. The numbers that the players on your team produce will be how your fantasy team gets their points and the scoring system for ESPN's WNBA fantasy game. For points, rebounds, and assists, you get one point per item. So if someone gets 20 points and 10 rebounds, that would be 30 fantasy points. For steals and blocks, you get two points for each one you contribute. And then for three pointers, it's technically one point per three pointer, but if a player hits a three pointer, they also get three regular points. So the players that hit threes get a bonus point for each shot they make.Heading into a draft, what type of player should fantasy managers look to take in the first few rounds?<div type="image" title="2021 WNBA leading scorer Tina Charles drives on Seattle Storm superstar Breanna Stewart." height="1666" width="2222" msid="91377729" hostid="261"></div>To start the draft, especially in this format, you definitely go with the best player available. In some fantasy formats, you have to pay a little bit more attention to position because there can be position scarcity sometimes, but to start the draft, my personal philosophy is always best player available, regardless of position. Position might just be a tie-breaker, but in the WNBA ESPN game, there are only three positions listed: center, forward, and guard. So there's a little bit less position scarcity than in a sport like fantasy baseball. To start the draft, you're looking for superstars. I'm a nerd, and how I approach fantasy sports analysis is through nerdism. One of the first things that I did was generate a spreadsheet, so I've got a spreadsheet with all of the WNBA players' stats from last season. And I can sort based on category, so I can sort based on points, sort based on rebounds, assists, steals, whatever. And I also have a column where I calculate how many fantasy points per game each player scored based on their stats from last season.If I'm looking at my spreadsheet, an obvious correlation jumps out. The top 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 fantasy scorers per game last season were almost all 20-point, 10-rebounds players. They didn't have those exact numbers, but Tina Charles was number 1 with 23 points, 9.6 rebounds, Jonquel Jones 19 and 11, [Breanna Stewart] was at 20 and almost 10. Brittney Griner had 21 and almost 10.That jumps out at me because, as you look through this list, there aren't any points-assist double-double people at the top. No steals and blocks necessarily at the top. It's almost all points-rebounds folks. And so what that tells me as I look through it is that the WNBA star players almost overwhelmingly, at least as far as production goes, are bigs: forwards and centers. They're dominating in the paint and they're putting up 20 and 10.<div type="image" title="a'ja wilson" height="1729" width="2306" msid="91377731" hostid="261"></div>What is your strategy when it comes to selecting a guard? Do you go with a prolific scorer or opt for assists or steals specialists?You definitely want to get a scorer because scoring and rebounds are all one-to-one points to fantasy points. The volume scorers have more opportunity to put up consistent points. But in the backcourt, you want to look for all-around producers, not just points and assists, but rebounds, too.The top guards [last season] were actually Courtney Williams and Skylar Diggins-Smith, because, for Courtney Williams, she was putting up almost seven boards a game in addition to her points. Skylar was over five assists with more than three boards as well. So for the back court, all-around game is a little bit more valuable than specialists. All of that said, this season in the backcourt, I'm really looking at Sabrina Ionescu. In her first few games in the WNBA a couple years ago, her numbers were crazy before she injured her ankle. And last season, I think she was still dealing with that for most of the season. She's one that has all-around numbers, but I could see her as one that could have high assist numbers, but also the excellent all-around game to maybe get her up closer to the, the big forwards as far as her fantasy production.<div type="image" title="Sabrina Ionescu." height="1405" width="1874" msid="91377734" hostid="261"></div>How much stock should you put into a player's statistics from last season if they find themselves in a different team situation this year? For example, Courtney Williams led the Atlanta Dream in every major statistical category last year but is now joining a very deep squad in the Connecticut Sun.It almost has to be on a case-by-case basis. One difference that I'm seeing in preparing for fantasy women's basketball versus fantasy men's basketball is that there's much more turnover among the elite players in fantasy women's basketball as far as going to new team situations. A lot of the best players are playing overseas, so as I was going through and doing team previews, I had to make note of this player is going to be late getting to camp because her season in France is continuing into the [WNBA] season.There are just a lot of variables. Even the number of games — last season it was 32 games, this season is 36. Mix that with the player turnover, it is a little more difficult to project individual player numbers in fantasy women's basketball than it traditionally has been in fantasy men's.How do you approach drafting players who may not be available for the duration of the season, whether they're playing overseas or dealing with injuries?<div type="image" title="Elena Delle Donne." height="1666" width="2222" msid="91377736" hostid="261"></div>That actually comes down to a specific manager's strategy. The question is risk versus reward. Do you swing for the fences? Maybe you start off with Elena Delle Donne and [Breanna Stewart], if you can get 'em. If they're healthy, then you probably just won your league. But if they're not healthy, then you're gonna be scrambling trying to catch up. And so that becomes how much of a risk-taker you are. Maybe it also matters where you're drafting.So if you've got the No. 1 overall pick, or a top two or three pick, maybe you can be a little more conservative. You can go with Jonquel Jones as your No. 1 overall, and feel good that you've got a stable foundation piece. But if you're picking six and of a six-team league and you've got those two consecutive picks [No. 6 and No. 7], maybe you take the chance and say, "Okay, if I take [Stewart] and Elena, I could arguably have a better producer than the team to pick No. 1 overall that doesn't pick again until 12." That becomes part of the strategy and the risk-reward. And if you take more chances early, then maybe you have to be a bit more conservative with your later picks and grab a bunch of players that you know will be available who can then limit your floor, so to speak. Whereas maybe the reverse is true. If you start off and your first two picks are rock solid, then you can swing for the fences in the third and fourth rounds, knowing that those can be clears that put you over the top but won't necessarily sink your season if they do have injuries. What's your philosophy on drafting rookies?<div type="image" title="The Atlanta Dream selected Rhyne Howard with the first overall pick of the 2022 WNBA Draft." height="1878" width="2500" msid="91377739" hostid="261"></div>You have to look at the type of player. Are they a player that's gonna produce box score stats or a player that's going to be valuable to a team without necessarily putting up heavy stats? And then you also have to look at what their opportunity level looks like. Are they gonna come in and be a heavy volume player right off the bat? Whereas a rookie coming in on [a deeper team] may have to be the seventh player off the bench. This season, as far as rookies, I'm looking at [Rhyne] Howard and Shakira Austin. What else should fantasy managers keep in mind?The draft is often one of the most fun events of the year, and it's also one of the bigger events, as far as importance to your team, but it doesn't end there. The teams that are most successful often are the teams whose managers pay the most attention. They keep up with who's playing well and who's not. They will go to the free agency wire and pick up the hot player before everyone else. With WNBA fantasy being such a new league, I think that those who are willing to just really dig in will be the people that win these first few leagues. But I think the most important thing is to have fun with it. Use this as a tool. I grew up watching NBA basketball, so it was always part of my life, but I also grew up watching women's basketball. The same way I remember watching Dr. J dunk when I was a kid, I remember Cheryl Miller giving folks the business at USC.<div type="image" title="Diana Taurasi high-fives fans after her Phoenix Mercury's victory in Game 2 of the 2021 WNBA Finals." height="1666" width="2222" msid="91377741" hostid="261"></div> I got into fantasy men's basketball around the turn of the century 20 years ago. And even though I'd always been an NBA fan, once I got into fantasy, I started looking at the game in a whole different way because I was spending so much time watching it and analyzing it, trying to get my fantasy team right. And so I am really excited to go through a similar process with the WNBA and fantasy women's basketball. The people that are able to just get into it that way are going to be the ones whose teams win and hopefully the ones that get the most out of this experience.Do you suspect that ESPN fantasy women's basketball has the potential to help draw new fans to the WNBA?I hope it's hugely important because one thing we know about fans across sports is that people who play fantasy sports are more likely to watch games. They're going to watch more games, and not just their home teams, they're gonna watch all the games because every game has an impact on their fantasy teams. Even if the game's a blowout, somebody is gonna be putting up numbers that are gonna affect fantasy rosters. I'm hoping that people who were already into the WNBA will enjoy it in a different way and the people that may not pay as much attention to WNBA but like fantasy sports use this as a vehicle to really dig in and start loving and enjoying all the stories. I guess time will tell how it works out, but I feel like it can't be anything but a positive.

ESPN's fantasy basketball expert breaks down the best strategies for managing a WNBA fantasy team

<ul class="summary-list"><li>I'm a marketing professional based in Las Vegas. As the pandemic went on, I wanted to quit my job.</li><li>Then, I decided to join a <keyword id="11939042" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="fantasy-football" source="Orion">fantasy football</keyword> league with my <keyword id="13090025" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="coworkers" source="Orion">coworkers</keyword> — even though I didn't know anything about <keyword id="11893855" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="sports" source="Orion">sports</keyword>.</li></ul>My job sucked. Long hours and reduced pay for everyone during the first year of the pandemic, along with a lack of simple recognition, led me to consider bailing.But before I joined millions of others in the "<a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/category/great-resignation">Great Resignation</a>," I decided to try and appreciate my job in new ways. I knew any change had to start with my own outlook and actions, so when one of my coworkers asked if I wanted to join a workplace fantasy football league, I said yes. <h2>It didn't matter that I rarely watch football</h2>I grew up in a football-loving family, but as a teenager in the '80s who loved new-wave music and rebelled against the jocks, I rejected sports simply on principle. Later, in my 30s, I realized I enjoyed the instant camaraderie and bond formed when sharing the ritual of rooting for a team or against one — even if I still don't love the sport and refuse to spend three hours watching a game.For the past four years, prior to the pandemic, I worked remotely from my home office. This arrangement allowed for a flexible work schedule, giving me the freedom to go to weekly yoga classes, business networking luncheons, and quick shopping trips.When pandemic lockdowns started, like most people, I didn't bother to look presentable and relied too much on email and instant messenger.<h2>Days would go by without any phone conversations or video calls</h2>As I worked on my commitment to make changes to give my job a second chance, I was excited to start something fun with my coworkers.Our league's draft happened just one day after I committed to join. My heart sank as I realized I was in over my head. No amount of frantic Googling or watching online videos helped me understand the basics of the game. Every article was beyond my limited knowledge. Ready with my glass of sauvignon blanc, I logged on to the video chat to begin the league draft with several salespeople, my boss, some IT folks, and another marketing colleague. After I fumbled through the first half, a salesperson shared his draft <keyword id="11893563" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="strategy" source="Orion">strategy</keyword> with me. He sorted players and chose them by their projected season points. "How do you do that?" I cried. After he showed me the simple steps, I recruited what turned out to be my best player.<h2>Seven weeks into the season, I had zero wins </h2>Sitting in last place, I asked for help from another one of my fellow fantasy football players. We worked together for three years, but we rarely talked about personal stuff. I knew he had a wife and kids, but not much more. <div type="image" title="Vicky Grogg's fantasy football score." height="369" width="492" msid="92499543" hostid="261" sizebytes="6156"></div>When I asked him to help me understand fantasy football, his face lit up. He shared the types of players I should have on my team, how to add available players during the week, and simple strategies for optimizing my weekly points.From there, we talked about his recent family trip to an amusement park and his ability to watch a football game on his app while he waited in line for a ride. It was the first time his daughter rode a roller coaster.I shared my favorite hiking and birding spots around my current home of Las Vegas and told him about the small stand of Aspens turning yellow on nearby Mount Charleston — a place tourists to Las Vegas usually miss.<h2>Being part of the league gave me incentive to reach out to my teammates</h2>I called more often than emailed, and I joined meetings a couple minutes earlier to participate in silly chatter about the week's games.My attitude toward my job and my relationships with coworkers improved simply because I agreed to joining a fantasy football league. <h2>I made an effort to try something outside my comfort zone</h2>While I didn't think being part of a fantasy football league would dramatically change my view of work, the camaraderie and connection improved my overall job satisfaction. Now, instead of writing my resignation letter, I'm looking forward to the next draft. At the end of the season, I ended up in 11th place, but I still feel like I won.

I wanted to quit my job. Joining a fantasy football league with coworkers changed my mind.

<ul class="summary-list"><li>I'm a marketing professional based in Las Vegas. As the pandemic went on, I wanted to quit my job.</li><li>Then, I decided to join a <keyword id="11939042" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="fantasy-football" source="Orion">fantasy football</keyword> league with my <keyword id="13090025" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="coworkers" source="Orion">coworkers</keyword> — even though I didn't know anything about <keyword id="11893855" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="sports" source="Orion">sports</keyword>.</li></ul>My job sucked. Long hours and reduced pay for everyone during the first year of the pandemic, along with a lack of simple recognition, led me to consider bailing.But before I joined millions of others in the "<a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/category/great-resignation">Great Resignation</a>," I decided to try and appreciate my job in new ways. I knew any change had to start with my own outlook and actions, so when one of my coworkers asked if I wanted to join a workplace fantasy football league, I said yes. <h2>It didn't matter that I rarely watch football</h2>I grew up in a football-loving family, but as a teenager in the '80s who loved new-wave music and rebelled against the jocks, I rejected sports simply on principle. Later, in my 30s, I realized I enjoyed the instant camaraderie and bond formed when sharing the ritual of rooting for a team or against one — even if I still don't love the sport and refuse to spend three hours watching a game.For the past four years, prior to the pandemic, I worked remotely from my home office. This arrangement allowed for a flexible work schedule, giving me the freedom to go to weekly yoga classes, business networking luncheons, and quick shopping trips.When pandemic lockdowns started, like most people, I didn't bother to look presentable and relied too much on email and instant messenger.<h2>Days would go by without any phone conversations or video calls</h2>As I worked on my commitment to make changes to give my job a second chance, I was excited to start something fun with my coworkers.Our league's draft happened just one day after I committed to join. My heart sank as I realized I was in over my head. No amount of frantic Googling or watching online videos helped me understand the basics of the game. Every article was beyond my limited knowledge. Ready with my glass of sauvignon blanc, I logged on to the video chat to begin the league draft with several salespeople, my boss, some IT folks, and another marketing colleague. After I fumbled through the first half, a salesperson shared his draft <keyword id="11893563" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="strategy" source="Orion">strategy</keyword> with me. He sorted players and chose them by their projected season points. "How do you do that?" I cried. After he showed me the simple steps, I recruited what turned out to be my best player.<h2>Seven weeks into the season, I had zero wins </h2>Sitting in last place, I asked for help from another one of my fellow fantasy football players. We worked together for three years, but we rarely talked about personal stuff. I knew he had a wife and kids, but not much more. <div type="image" title="Vicky Grogg's fantasy football score." height="369" width="492" msid="92501090" hostid="261" sizebytes="6156"></div>When I asked him to help me understand fantasy football, his face lit up. He shared the types of players I should have on my team, how to add available players during the week, and simple strategies for optimizing my weekly points.From there, we talked about his recent family trip to an amusement park and his ability to watch a football game on his app while he waited in line for a ride. It was the first time his daughter rode a roller coaster.I shared my favorite hiking and birding spots around my current home of Las Vegas and told him about the small stand of Aspens turning yellow on nearby Mount Charleston — a place tourists to Las Vegas usually miss.<h2>Being part of the league gave me incentive to reach out to my teammates</h2>I called more often than emailed, and I joined meetings a couple minutes earlier to participate in silly chatter about the week's games.My attitude toward my job and my relationships with coworkers improved simply because I agreed to joining a fantasy football league. <h2>I made an effort to try something outside my comfort zone</h2>While I didn't think being part of a fantasy football league would dramatically change my view of work, the camaraderie and connection improved my overall job satisfaction. Now, instead of writing my resignation letter, I'm looking forward to the next draft. At the end of the season, I ended up in 11th place, but I still feel like I won.

<ul class="summary-list"><li>Commentator Jim Nantz says that <keyword id="13206017" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="phil-mickelson" source="Orion">Phil Mickelson</keyword> once suffered a devastating loss in the championship of their <keyword id="11939042" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="fantasy-football" source="Orion">fantasy football</keyword> league.</li><li>Nantz believed the loss was so tough that it affected Mickelson's play on the course the following week.</li></ul>Phil Mickelson loves to talk trash.Whether he's <a href="https://www.insider.com/phil-mickelson-trolled-tiger-woods-practice-bet-2021-5" target="_blank" rel="noopener">needling longtime rival Tiger Woods</a> or <a href="https://www.insider.com/dustin-johnson-phil-mickelson-trash-talk-masters-2021-4" target="_blank" rel="noopener">trolling fellow golfers who have yet to win a green jacket</a>, Mickelson's gift of grating gab is up there with the best of them.But <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Phil-Rip-Roaring-Unauthorized-Biography-Superstar/dp/1476797099/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">according to a new biography</a>, "Phil: The Rip-Roaring (and Unauthorized!) Biography of <keyword id="11895642" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="golf" source="Orion">Golf</keyword>'s Most Colorful Superstar" by Alan Shipnuck, Mickelson's proclivity for trash talk has at times come back to bite him.Shipnuck's book explores every facet of Mickelson's career, and opens with a chapter that features figures from Mickelson's life and around the golfing world sharing their best Mickelson story, for better or worse.In his Phil story, longtime <keyword id="11893855" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="sports" source="Orion">sports</keyword> commentator Jim Nantz reveals that he and Mickelson have played in the same fantasy football league for years, and that while Mickelson is one heck of a waiver-wire worker, he's been hit with the fantasy football woes as well."He takes it very seriously, and he's good at it — he has won the league championship a couple of times," Nantz told Shipnuck. "We hold the draft in person every year in a hotel conference room during the Northern Trust [tournament], and Phil has never missed one. In 2013, he was staying at a different hotel in Jersey City a couple of blocks away, so he walked over... carrying the Claret Jug.""Some good wine was drank out of it that night," Nantz said.But while Mickelson might be a fun hang on draft night, Nantz says he gets quite serious when the league is on the line."The best story is from 2020," Nantz said. "Phil had Alvin Kamara as his running back when he went for six touchdowns in Week 16. That gave Phil such a commanding lead in the standings it was a virtual certainty he was going to win the title. I'm talking a 99.999 percent probability."Chances are plenty of fantasy football managers around the world remember Kamara's breakout performance against the Vikings on Christmas day."He sent out an email to the whole league, gloating. I mean, he went on and on, really laying it on thick. Well, the team that was in second place had Josh Allen as their quarterback, and in the last game of the season, on Monday night, Allen went for 39 points and Phil lost the title by one point."Nantz went as far as to say he believed the loss even showed up on the golf course."He was crushed," Nantz said. "Absolutely devastated. He took it so hard I honestly believe it affected his play on the West Coast swing."Mickelson's string of results following the fantasy football loss give a bit of credence to Nantz's theory — in his first three tournaments of the new year, Mickelson had two missed cuts and one T53 finish.That said, Mickelson would bounce back by summertime, <a href="https://www.insider.com/video-phil-mickelson-pga-championship-fans-rush-green-2021-5" target="_blank" rel="noopener">going on to win the PGA Championship in May</a>, becoming the oldest player to ever win a major in the process. He will not, however, defend his title, <a href="https://www.insider.com/will-phil-mickelson-play-pga-championship-2022-5">withdrawing</a> from this weekend's event at Southern Hills Country Club in Tulsa, Oklahoma, after announcing a leave of absence from competitive golf in February. Mickelson has not played a PGA Tour event since his <a href="https://www.insider.com/phil-mickelson-saudi-golf-league-scary-2022-2">incendiary comments</a> (to Shipnuck for the book) about a possible breakaway golf tour and about Saudi Arabia came to light.

Jim Nantz says Phil Mickelson once suffered a fantasy football loss so devastating that it may have affected his play on the golf course

Homegrown vernacular social gaming platform <keyword id="7830073" type="General" weightage="80" keywordseo="winzo" source="Orion">WinZO</keyword> Games on Tuesday said it has challenged <keyword id="6355629" type="General" weightage="100" keywordseo="google" source="Orion">Google</keyword>'s recent policy in the Delhi High Court for the selective inclusion of only daily fantasy sports (DFS) and Rummy games on its <keyword id="1470391" type="General" weightage="80" keywordseo="play-store" source="Orion">Play Store</keyword> that leaves out several skill gaming platforms and local developers. WinZO has sought restraint from the court against Google from implementing the "arbitrary classification which will impact the reputation of its business." WinZO is among industry players, such as Mobile Premier League (MPL) and Zupee, who have called the policy arbitrary, unfair and restrictive. Saumya Singh Rathore, Co-founder, WinZO Games told IANS that there is no evaluation of the impact that is likely to result from such a clearly discriminatory and arbitrary classification by <keyword id="963171" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="google-play" source="Orion">Google Play</keyword>. "We fail to understand how Google is being permitted to select that within a set of legal/legitimate businesses, only DFS and Rummy will be onboarded and the other Skill Games, excluded," he stressed. Google was yet to reach on the WinZO lawsuit. Google is set to run a pilot test for the local developers to distribute their daily fantasy sports (DFS) and rummy games apps on Play Store in India, as e-sports become big in the country. Starting September 28, Play Store will begin a limited-time pilot allowing for the distribution of DFS and Rummy apps to users in India by developers incorporated in India. The pilot programme will run from September 28, 2022 until September 28, 2023. According to WinZO lawsuit, the Google policy will not only reduce the marketing cost for players in monopoly to one-fourth of their cost but also create a false perception of legitimation of DFS and Rummy over all other games such as Carrom, Chess, Quiz, etc. "Google's policy can lead to distortions in the competitive Indian gaming ecosystem by resulting in unparalleled access to the 2.5 billion monthly active users across 190 countries where the Google Play Store is available," said the lawsuit. Google Play Store is the largest app distribution platform owning 97 per cent market share in India. Sameer Barde, CEO of E-Gaming Federation had said that the Google move "helps legitimate skill gaming operators grow while eliminating unscrupulous fly-by-night operators," almost implying that companies excluded in the pilot are not legitimised. The Federation of Indian Fantasy Sports (FIFS) Director General, Joy Bhattacharya, had said that Google Play Store is allowing games "recognised by the <keyword id="6354977" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="supreme-court" source="Orion">Supreme Court</keyword> of India as regular business activities". In the K.R. Lakshmanan vs State of <keyword id="20154" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="tamil-nadu" source="Orion">Tamil Nadu</keyword> (which most of the Rummy Companies cite for legality) case, the Supreme Court inferred Rummy as being a game of skill, and explicitly drew an analogy to other games of skill, like chess and golf. "The year-long pilot is detrimental to thousands of companies and can lead to irreversible market distortion of a fast-moving gaming tech industry, leading to the death of many players as the strong get stronger," Rathore told IANS. WinZO is seeking an injunction restraining Google from implementing its revised Playstore policy, along with a ruling that Google must change its policy to allow all apps offering games of skill on its Play Store and not just a select few. WinZO is available in 12 languages, with over 85 million registered users. SEE ALSO : <a target="_blank" class="c-link c-message_attachment__title_link" href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/news/moodys-withdraws-rating-of-kalyan-jewellers/articleshow/94322833.cms">Moody's withdraws rating of Kalyan Jewellers</a> <a target="_blank" class="c-link c-message_attachment__title_link" href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/news/essar-group-targets-key-role-in-building-market-for-hydrogen/articleshow/94325146.cms">Essar Group targets key role in building market for hydrogen</a>

WinZO sues Google for Play Store policy allowing only fantasy sports, rummy games

<ul class="summary-list"><li>Fantasy sports are offering established fans and newcomers a way to engage with women's sports.</li><li>Just Women's Sports' Pick and Play collaboration with Facebook puts bragging rights on the line.</li></ul>For stakeholders in women's pro sports, getting casual fans to tune in has long been the key challenge. But now they're getting some help from a perhaps unlikely source: fantasy sports.Just Women's Sports has teamed up with Facebook to develop a free mobile Pick and Play game devoted exclusively to women's sporting events. Players can test their knowledge of the women's sports landscape by answering five questions about upcoming matchups and competitions each week.<div type="image" title="The Just Women's Sports Pick and Play Facebook fantasy game." height="3520" width="3840" msid="94627708" hostid="261" sizebytes="451800"></div>"We launched this in partnership with Facebook with the aim of creating an interactive game that helped fans engage with both JWS and their favorite leagues and teams," Just Women's Sports founder and CEO Haley Rosen told Insider. "Interactive games, whether fantasy football or daily predictor games, are a staple on the men's side, but that infrastructure still needs to be built out on the women's.""We saw this as a great opportunity to make the leap into interactive content," she added.Participants earn five points for each question answered correctly, and if they get all five questions right, they'll rocket up the leaderboard by doubling their overall score for the week. At the end of the month, Just Women's Sports and Facebook crown a winner.<div type="image" title="Kelsey Plum." height="1666" width="2500" msid="94627711" hostid="261" sizebytes="191764"></div>"We've had nearly 100,000 people play, which is a great start and a number we're proud of," Rosen said. "We didn't set any expectations around numbers because it's our first foray into this kind of venture."But beyond those numbers, Rosen and company hope that fantasy games will help drive interest in women's sports. She says that the JWS newsletter and Facebook page have already both received an uptick in engagement seemingly as a result of the pick and play game.The more folks have a vested interest in what goes on in the WNBA, National Women's Soccer League (NWSL), and other women's sports events through playing the game, the more likely they are to keep up with what happens as the competition gets underway.<div type="image" title="Coco Gauff." height="1666" width="2222" msid="94627714" hostid="261" sizebytes="115550"></div>As Rosen sees it, "to attract die-hard fans you first need casual fans, and to bring in casual fans, you have to lean into opportunities that allow fans to engage with different leagues and teams even if they have limited or no prior knowledge." Just Women's Sports' Pick and Play game does exactly that."We've seen fans share the game among their friends, and we obviously want to encourage and make possible even more of that behavior," Rosen said. "Friendly rivalry and competition is one of the things people love most about sports, so we look to amplify that wherever we can."It's been awesome to see fans engage with all kinds of content," she added. "We want to make it easy and fun to be a fan of these leagues, and games like this are a great way to do that."Facebook users with iOS or Android devices can find the Just Women's Sports' Pick and Play game under the Fantasy Games section of their Facebook app.

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I wanted to quit my job. Joining a fantasy football league with coworkers changed my mind.

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