
Owned by SportsHub Technologies and operating out of Minneapolis, Minnesota, Fanball is a somewhat versatile fantasy sports site that offers several different sports and contests in both the standard salary cap and the auction type format.
Fanball fantasy football and Fanball fantasy baseball competitions are available on a daily basis. The main purpose of this Fanball review is to help players who are thinking about potentially joining Fanball. We tested out the site on players behalf and we bring the details and results of our testing to the public through this review.
When it comes to bonuses and extra value through promotional offers, Fanball truly disappoints as the site does not offer any promotions at all. New players who join the site are offered absolutely no welcome bonus and not even a free ticket to try real money games like many other sites offer.
The lack of bonuses and promotions is relatively common with fantasy sports sites, but few go as far as Fanball in this department and most usually offer at least come kind of kickback to their players.
That said, players at Fanball can get a little bit of value through the Fanball fantasy football podcast and Fanball fantasy football cheat sheet, which are available on site and the other helpful tips which can be found in the news section of the site.
The one area in which Fanball does a pretty good job is the general usability and quality of user interface. The Fanball site is very easy to use and even novice players will know where to go at all times, with site offering quite a limited choice of functionalities.
Nevertheless, the functions that are available can be easily accessed on both desktop and mobile devices and players can quickly enter competitions, draft their squads and make their deposits and cashouts via the cashier.
The majority of all features and services offered by Fanball can be accessed directly from the operator’s lobby, which immediately lists the upcoming contests which are available. This way, players who have a real money balance ready can enter a contest right away without even having to navigate their way to it.
The news section of the site provides some extras such as the Fanball fantasy football rankings and Fanball cheat sheet, which players can use to gain an advantage over the competition and make better choices while choosing their roster.
Fanball main site is well optimized so players can gain access to instant play on any device they choose, including various mobile devices. Android phone or tablet users can use their mobile internet browsers to jump into the action while iOS users can also download a Fanball app, which is available in the App Store.
At this time, Fanball does not offer an Android app, so all users who are not using an iPhone are limited to playing on their desktop computers or laptops or playing in their mobile browsers. However, considering the simple nature of the site, even the instant play version does a reasonable job and there is no obstacle to mobile players playing Fanball.
Depositing money into a Fanball account is fortunately quite simple. Players can use any common credit or debit cards including Visa, MasterCard, Discover and Amex as well as PayPal to make deposits. All deposits made via any of these deposit methods are processed instantly and available for play right away.
Players who are looking to cash out from their Fanball accounts can use several different payment methods. A direct bank transfer can be requested, which usually takes 3-5 days to process. Players can also request a check, either via email or actual mail, and such checks are sent to players within 3-15 days, depending on whether the check is electronic or real paper.
Additionally, players can request their cashouts via virtual Tango Cards, which results in faster cashouts. These virtual cards are basically Visa cards that can be used to make further online deposits or purchases without actually having the card in physical form.
While the general nature of Fanball is such that most competitions are relatively small in size and there isn’t too much chance to win big amounts of cash at once, the site does not appear to put any limits on how much players can cashout from their balances. In fact, players who win big can request the entire amount via check or electronic bank transfer and such transfers are made just like all others, without special restrictions.
When it comes to actually getting the pay-outs processed, the operator is a part of a large group of sites and they seem to have a solid system for payments processing in place. All players can request a cashout via one of several different payment methods, with bank transfers and paper checks being the most common ones used by most players.
When it comes to Fanball customer service, it is another area where the site does not compare too well with its competitors. Players at Fanball can contact the customer support department using an on-site email form and this is literally the only support method available. The form allows players to attach files to it, which can be useful for the customer identity confirmations, but generally speaking email is a slow and not the most player friendly of support methods.
Players who are looking for a Fanball phone number or access to a live chat functionality are out of luck as the site does not offer either of these two common and modern support methods. This means that in every single case when someone needs help with their Fanball account, they have to wait for a reply to their email, which is not up to the standards of modern gaming sites.
According to a Congressional Act passed in 2006, fantasy sports are a game of skill and are considered completely legal by the federal government. It is for this reason that so many fantasy sports companies, including Fanball, are operating within the US without any legal concerns.
However, despite this decision of the federal government, there are those who still believe that fantasy sports come too close to gambling and in some states operators are prohibited from playing at fantasy sites. Fanball in particular is not available to players in the following states:
Players who find themselves on the territory of these states should not attempt a Fanball login. Additionally, players who are the citizens of Arizona, Hawaii, Iowa, Louisiana, Montana, Nevada, Vermont and Washington State cannot play for real money at all as they are not eligible to receive real money prizes from Fanball.
All these restrictions are imposed by state governments upon the fantasy operators and since these are American companies who are looking to remain in good standing throughout the country, players from banned states must accept that this is the case until their state legislators change their minds.
The US gambling laws are currently quite tricky to navigate, with huge variations between different states. There's also the space of offshore operators which are 100% to be avoided. Any unlicensed brand offers online gambling services illegally to US players. They tend to fall into two categories though, reputable operations who have yet to obtain US licensing, such as Pinnacle sports and those who just continue operating illegally. It's just something to be aware of and cautious about.
While some fantasy sports operators are linked to other games such as sports betting or other casino and gambling games, Fanball is a 100% fantasy sports site with absolutely no other games in the mix. This means that players who play at Fanball can be 100% sure that what they are doing is legal and allowed in the US and they don’t need to worry about the gambling regulations and licenses. Players who join Fanball can be sure that the only thing they will be in for is fantasy sports with nothing else even on the offer.
At Fanball, players can definitely get access to plenty of daily fantasy competitions for the main sports and leagues. This includes Fanball NFL, Fanball NBA and Fanball MLB competitions. While these are by far the most popular fantasy sports, there are some obvious sports missing from the offer, with hockey leading the way. With a few more additions to their portfolio, we would consider Fanball to be one of the best fantasy sports sites.
The site does not offer any other sports either, so don’t expect to play racing or golf competitions at Fanball at this time. This makes the sports offer at Fanball quite humble and while there are many sites that offer just as few different sports, this is no excuse as the top sites are often offering well over a dozen different sports.
The vast majority of all competitions at the site fall off to Fanball football and baseball competitions, with some NBA tournaments also available during the main season and the playoffs.
Unlike the major fantasy sports giants out there that offer many contests with thousands of players in mind, Fanball contests are quite limited, with most of them designed for a handful of players and guaranteed prize pools to match this intention. The buy-ins range from a single dollar to several hundred dollars, but the bigger buy-ins are usually head to head contests that only start when two players join them.
All guaranteed prize pools are based on the original buy-in and will usually not start unless the player pool is filled to the maximum, which means no overlays on prize pools are possible. The site charges a 10% fee on every entry regardless of the buy-in level.
Occasionally, Fanball does throw bigger contests, but even the largest prize pools offered at the site cannot compare themselves to the common daily contests offered by the bigger sites, which makes them a poor choice for those looking to turn small investments into big prizes.
Unfortunately for players who are used to forums and connecting with other players through the sites they play at, Fanball does not offer such functionality. While forums and other forms of player communication are not available at Fanball, some interactivity is provided by Fanball podcast and their news section which has plenty of useful materials for the players.
In addition to these, Fanball are also quite active on Twitter and players can get involved in discussions with each other through there, by commenting on Fanball tweets. All that said, the site could definitely do a better job of setting up a proper community like some of the competitors are doing as this would probably make it a lot more popular among the players - ranking it among the most popular fantasy sports sites.
US players who are looking to play fantasy sports at Fanball will be happy to see the simplicity with which the operator allows them to get into the action. The registration process takes no longer than a few minutes, with the operator requesting a handful of personal details. Remember that players from certain states are not eligible for real money play and you may get blocked out if you try to access the site from states in which play is restricted.
Once a player has created an account, they can proceed to log in and make their first real money deposit. Depositing cash into the account is as simple as signing up, with the cashier option offering several different methods to load up your balance. All deposits are instantly available for play, so players don’t need to worry about missing an upcoming contest at any time.
Once the balance is positive, players can easily enter various contests from the main lobby. The contests can be filtered by the different sports, buy-in range, player pool size and other factors. Once a player chooses a contest to enter, they are taken to a different screen, where a roster of player is selected. Once a roster is successfully picked out, all that remains is to pay the buyin and wait for the game to start.
Fantasy sports are legal in the USA and Fanball is available to players in most states. If you live in a state that is restricted at Fanball, stay away from the site and don’t try to play around the regulation.
No! Unfortunately, at this time, Fanball does not provide any bonuses or promotions to its players. If you are looking to play real money games, you will need to deposit real money and play only with the amount you deposit.
Fanball players can play fantasy football, basketball and baseball. Other sports such as golf, racing or hockey are currently not available on the platform.
Players can use desktop computers and laptops to play at Fanball at any time. Additionally, mobile players can use their internet browsers to access the site and iPhone users can download the betting app from the App Store to get an even better mobile access.
No! Fanball only offers fantasy sports contests and no other games or competitions are available. This includes sports betting, which is not available at the site.
Fanball is a relatively small fantasy sports site with a limited offer. The site does not offer bonuses or a community of any sorts but novice fantasy players may still want to try it out and hone their skills while playing low stakes contests here. Sign up with Fanball today, pick the best lineups, beat your competition and start your journey towards fantasy sports greatness.
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