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Fantasy sports fans looking to win a buck or two or thousands, in New York, just got sacked. DraftKings and FanDuel have been declared illegal gambling sites by the New York State attorney general. 

All bets are off, and your state may be next.

Reports the New York Times:

The cease-and-desist order by the attorney general, Eric T. Schneiderman, is a major blow to a multibillion-dollar industry that introduced sports betting to legions of young sports fans and has formed partnerships with many of the nation’s professional sports teams. Given the New York attorney general’s historic role as a consumer-protection advocate, legal experts say the action will most likely reverberate in other states where legislators and investigators are increasingly questioning whether the industry should operate unfettered by regulations that govern legalized gambling.

Fantasy sports companies contend that their games are not gambling because they involve more skill than luck and were legally sanctioned by a 2006 federal law that exempted fantasy sports from a prohibition against processing online financial wagering. That view is increasingly being challenged as fantasy sites have begun offering million-dollar prizes and bets on individual sports, such as golf, mixed martial arts and Nascar races, magnifying the element of chance and making the exemption more difficult to defend.

Sounds like New York state wants part of the millions of dollars cut.

It seems that the jig was spotted when a DraftKings employee hit big playing on Fanduel.

Mr. Schneiderman began investigating the fantasy sites after a DraftKings employee inadvertently released internal betting data and that same week won $350,000 on the rival site, FanDuel, which is based in New York. A representative of DraftKings denied that the employee used the internal data to gain an advantage. Both fantasy companies had allowed employees to bet on rival sites, but no longer do. Mr. Schneiderman asked the two companies for a range of internal data and details on how they prevent fraud.

You ruined it for everybody, buddy.

Let us know what you think in the comments.

Photo: screen cap