DraftKings cited horse racing and spelling bees as it appealed the preliminary injunction imposed against daily fantasy sports (DFS) operators in New York. The court that sided with state Attorney General Eric Schneiderman in his battle to ban DFS operators “abused its discretion” and committed several errors of law when it imposed the injunction in December, DraftKings argued in an appeal filed this week. The company claims that a preliminary injunction banning ban DraftKings and FanDuel in New York should be thrown out because Schneiderman “did not come close to carrying the burden” of proving that the law is on…

New York Fantasy Sports sites FanDuel Inc. and DraftKings Inc., already facing mounting legal and regulatory scrutiny, ran into more trouble when Citigroup said it was blocking transactions by New York state residents. The move by the world’s largest credit-card lender added to the pressure in New York, the heart of the fantasy-sports industry’s legal woes since Attorney General Eric Schneiderman sued the companies in November. Schneiderman contends that daily fantasy sports are a form of gambling, which is illegal in New York. The firms say they offer games of skill, and are accepting New Yorkers’ business as while the…

The Pennsylvania House Gaming Oversight Committee has passed a bill that could lead to the US state lifting a federal ban on sports betting. The Committee approved HR619 by a vote of 23-1, but the bill must pass a number of other steps before it can be adopted as state legislation. HR619 proposes the US Congress lifts a federal ban on sports betting in order to allow states in which gambling is regulated to legalise sports betting through licensed facilities. The resolution also highlights widespread illegal sports betting across the US and that a regulated market would suit all parties….

It’s been a busy week for fantasy sports in America, with several states starting to consider the legality of the activity. Some states are thinking about regulation, while others still believe the restrictive, prohibitive path is best for them. Here are some updates from around the nation: Florida moves to legalize fantasy sports The Florida Legislature put its stamp on a plan to legalize daily fantasy sports games Wednesday as two key committees approved a plan to impose regulations on the sport that mirrors the way the state regulates arcade games. But as lawmakers attempted to clarify one gaming issue,…

DraftKings announced that it has received a gaming license to operate in the United Kingdom, the first major U.S.-based daily fantasy sports site that will operate in a regulated market in Europe. DraftKings announced that it had received the license in a press release on Monday morning. In the release, DraftKings relayed that it had received the U.K. license, which it applied for in June. The license can be viewed here; DraftKings is now licensed for “Gambling Software” and “Pool Betting,” according to the license. The domain DraftKings.co.uk is now active, with the message “DraftKings is launching in your country…

After nearly a century of zero-tolerance policies that treated gambling as a mortal threat, U.S. sports leagues are rapidly cutting deals with companies involved in sports betting. To varying degrees, the leagues are partnering — openly and in secret — with oddsmakers, betting prognosticators and data providers that make sports wagering possible in the digital age, according to interviews with a range of sports gambling officials and experts. The deals lay the groundwork for the NFL, the NBA, the NHL and Major League Baseball to profit if sports betting is legalized in the United States, as many experts predict. But…