Big Data, Efficient Markets, and the End of Daily Fantasy Sports As We Know It?

Abstract

Fantasy Sports is a popular way for individuals to add another layer of enjoyment to their interest in sports. While fantasy sports have been around for many years, access to big data sets and computer power to process them is a relatively new phenomenon, as well as the ability to compete in daily competitions and not just season long campaigns. We posit that access to new and yet unforeseen data, models, and computing power to manage it, when viewed through the lens of Efficient Market Hypothesis, will cause the Daily Fantasy Sports market to change dramatically. We compare with several other markets to show the effects when similar technologies have become available.