Sports Journalism Project
Fantasy Football has become a hobby and in some extreme cases, a lifestyle, for many Americans. Fantasy Football was established in 1962 by Bill Winkenbach. Along with the help of Bill Tunnell and Scotty Stirling, the rules were developed for what later became known as Fantasy Football.
Winkenbach, Tunnell, and Stirling along with others started their first Fantasy Football league in 1963, which was called the Greater Oakland Professional Pigskin Prognosticators League (GOPPPL). Since this moment in history, Fantasy Football has had an increasing number of players every year. In September of 2013, there were over 20 million people playing Fantasy Football.
Ever since the very first league, Fantasy Football has expanded and become a huge part of the football culture today. Fans are rooting for individual players now, some even going as far as to play one of their fantasy players against their actual team, causing them to root for their team and an opposing player. Will Giglio, 24, who is playing in four leagues this season, knows that players on different teams become more important when you are in Fantasy Football.
“Before, I just cared only about my team, its players, and their success. But fantasy football makes it hard to just focus on one team and its players.” Giglio said. “It makes you more involved with the league as a whole. So, now I have stakes in almost every game of the week making them all important.”
Giglio has been playing Fantasy Football for several years now and has reached the point of knowing most of the players on each team. He is in a league with Logan Garske, 22, and Mackenzie Garske, 18. It is Mackenzie’s first time playing Fantasy Football. However, she seems to know what she is doing. She has made it to the championship and has learned a lot about football because of this new hobby.
Fantasy Football has a way of changing the way society views football. It is no longer about the points on the jumbo screen, or how well a team does in general. Now, people find themselves screaming at the TV trying to get Aaron Rodgers to pass the ball to Randall Cobb. The points each player scores has overpowered the need for a team to get more points.
Some people who play Fantasy Football have rules they create for themselves. There are people who will play whoever they have to play to win, and then there are people who will not draft a great player because they hate the team he is on. One rule that many people set for themselves is who they play. Logan is one person who takes this rule extremely seriously.
“I will never intentionally root for myself over my team. It’s a selfish act,” Garske said.
Then there are people like Mackenzie who will play anyone to win. Her drive to win overpowers her commitment to supporting her team. But she is in the Championship, making her logic sound.
For many people, Fantasy Football has improved the game of football and made it more enjoyable to watch. For others, it has made football more frustrating. This makes sense because you now have certain players that need to do well. Before, it was just rooting for a team as a whole. Nicole Waldron, 21, has gotten more involved in football ever since she began participating in Fantasy Football.
“I definitely enjoy it more now. Before Fantasy, I watched football and I didn’t get too into it unless it was my Chargers.” Waldron said. “But now I get super into almost every game.”
Logan Garske, who has also become more involved in the sport since joining a league, has gone through many different emotions while playing Fantasy Football.
“It makes me more passionate about it at least,” Garske said. “I don’t always enjoy it but I get more excited about it, more frustrated at it, and sometimes more pumped about it.”
Fantasy Football has definitely put an “I” in team. Making the sport more about individuals than the team. There are always more fans rooting for the whole team, but Fantasy Football has brought something special to the table. People pay attention to every game now, rooting for different players and hoping other teams get points. It has changed the face of competition.
Football is no longer about whose favorite team is better than whose. It has become who has the best players from each team and who set the best lineup each week. Fantasy Football has done many things to change football. It has gotten people to watch every single game and root for players on teams that a person would never usually root for. It has expanded our knowledge of the game and allowed us to recognize other players for their skills. It has made injuries a big deal and the backups to injured players have become heroes. It has changed the way we view football and as time progresses, it will just keep changing the game.
Taylor Garske 