ESPN.COM FANTASY GAMES
ESPN.com generated more than two million signups for its games (premium fantasy and free) over the past 12 months.
ESPN.com was the first Web site to offer fantasy leagues for all four major sports:
Fantasy Football (launched August 1995)
Fantasy Baseball (launched March 1996)
Fantasy Basketball (launched October 1996)
Fantasy Hockey (launched September 1997)
ESPN.com, along with NHL.com (a member of the ESPN.com Network), co-hosts the only official NHL Fantasy Game on the Internet.
ESPN.com was the first Web site to offer Live Drafts, which enable team
owners to draft players in real time, simultaneously with other owners within the same league. ESPN.com also introduced "Head-2-Head" competition to the Internet, enabling two particular team owners to face off against each other on a week-by-week basis.
All ESPN.com fantasy leagues provide team owners with unlimited free
transactions. Fantasy Football team owners can make roster changes up to game time.
ESPN.com gives team owners a wealth of information to help them make well-informed decisions:
Draft Day preparation guides
Statistics packages, including Sortable Stats
Exclusive Fantasy League columns
Up-to-the-minute injury reports
Chat rooms
Analysis from ESPN.com experts and ESPN commentators
Real-time in-game "GameCast" data feeds and ESPN's sport-specific studio shows (e.g., NBA 2Night, NFL 2Night, NHL 2Night and RPM 2Night) to track players' performances during games.
ESPN.com offers late season, mid-season and playoff versions to complement full- season leagues.
The standard price per team is $29.95; discounts are given to current fantasy players, annual subscribers to the ESPN Insider premium area, and buyers of multiple teams.
Sprint became the first sponsor of an ESPN.com premium game in July 1999 when it came on board for Fantasy Football.
... And ESPN.com's Free Games
ESPN.com also boasts the Tournament Challenge, a bracket game that mirrors the NCAA basketball tourney. Fans are asked to predict the winner of each game, from the first round through the championship. More than 590,000 people played the Tournament Challenge in 2000. Since its inception, the Challenge has been the largest tournament on the Internet.
Seven free ESPN.com games topped 100,000 players in 1999.
Some other ESPN.com free games include:
Pigskin Pick 'em (an NFL game presented by Pizza Hut)
College Pick 'em (college football)
Bowl Pick 'em (college football, presented by Circuit City)
Baseball Challenge (presented by Pizza Hut)
British Open Challenge (presented By BUYGOLF)
PGA Championship Challenge (presented By BUYGOLF)
ESPY Challenge (presented by GM and Pennzoil)
Gridiron Challenge (another NFL game presented by Visa)
X Games Challenge (presented by Starburst)
Beat The Swami (NFL Draft, presented by MBNA Visa)
Super Bowl Over/Under
ACC and Big Ten Challenge
U.S. Open Challenge
College Hoops Pick 'Em
Pick 'n' Roll (NBA playoffs)
Winter X Games Challenge
NBA Draft Challenge
NBA Triple Double Challenge
Winter X Games Challenge
ESPN.com hosted more than 35 sponsored free games, and presented 50 consecutive sponsored games, in 1999.
... And EIG League Site Games
In addition to ESPN.com, ESPN Internet Group produces the official league sites of the NFL, as well as EXPN.com and Soccernet.
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