Fantasy Football

There's something about football that brings out the most interesting things in men. You put a group of them in front of the T.V. for a Monday night game and the grunts and shouting that come from the living room are almost primeval. Never mind the scratching of the gut and the ridiculous outburst that come when their idols in the field make a fumble.

Now imagine all of this at their fingertips online.

Fantasy Football, along with other fantasy online sports has become an obsession with many of America's males. Not only does it allow them to pick and choose their own players, but they can trade, look at stats, and virtually own and manage their dream team without ever leaving the comfort of home. As the real players play in the NFL, the way your team performs is impacted by the way in which their real life counterparts perform. The better they do, the better your team does. It is the ultimate gaming experience for die hard fans who dream of managing a pro football team.

And the football game of dreams is quickly becoming a group activity. Even before football season starts men a teaming up with their buddies to prepare their lists of players and plot gaming strategies. In several local churches it has even become a means of outreach. At Campus Bible Church near California State University, Fresno, college boys begin to prepare right after baseball season ends.

“Fantasy sports, particularly football, takes the average spectator and allows them to view and manage the game from a coach's point of view. It's the ultimate rush because you are in control of the game you love best,” said David Tolladay, one of the college students at Campus who helps organize their Fantasy Football League.

“It gets pretty crazy,” said Michael Bergman. “We are all really competitive and sometimes it gets out of hand.” When asked how effective Fantasy Football is in local area outreach Bergman said, “It's huge. We get people at our gatherings who we've never seen before. Sometimes it gets really heated.”

What do you expect with an overload of testosterone?

Fantasy Football is not just a male fantasy though. Last year major sports channels such as ESPN began massive marketing campaigns online to promote Fantasy Football leagues in hopes of promoting the NFL season. In an article in the Journal Sentinal, journalist Don Walker stated that “The market is huge and lucrative. Fantasy football players are overwhelmingly male and are generally between the ages of 25 and 54, a key demographic for advertisers and sponsors… Research shows fantasy football players watch as much as three more hours of football on the weekend than non-fantasy players. They play in multiple fantasy leagues, and they visit sports Web sites at least four or five times a week.” According to the Fantasy Sports Trade Association “An estimated 15 million adults play fantasy football and spend more than $250 million a year just in gaming services.”`

“I use to only watch Monday night football,” Tolladay said. “Now I watch nearly every game that's on. If I'm not in front of a TV, I'm listening to the radio.”

As they talked, both Bergman and Tolladay were checking their cell phones for game scores. Bergman threw up his hands in disgust as Tolladay jumped up and down. In the background there was more cheering and yelling as other people heard the scores.

“This makes it more real than a game on TV,” said Tolladay. “We are the ones in control and that makes it more risky and more exciting. It's a total adrenaline rush.”