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People playing fantasy sports has long been a common occurence in offices across America. So to learn more about how fantasy sports fits into the average person’s life, TheSleepJudge.com surveyed 997 employed people with fantasy football and basketball teams.
What they discovered was not only interesting, it was more than a little surprising.
It turns out that the pursuit of office fantasy league glory comes at a steep price – paid for by employers and romantic partners.
For instance, participating in office fantasy sports costs companies $9,182 on average, per employee who participates in a fantasy sports league.
Other key findings include…
• Fantasy sports players in upper management positions on average waste more than $12k of their employer’s money annually – nearly 2x more than entry-level positions.
• More than 1 in 4 managers take an entire workday off to perfect their draft board; 4 in 10 leave work early for fantasy sports.
• Forty-eight percent of football fans and 54 percent of basketball fans were more excited about their fantasy team winning than they were about their real-life favorite team succeeding.
• Thirty-nine percent of managers and 27 percent of those in nonmanagement positions said they’ve left work early to attend a fantasy draft.
• Respondents admitted to spending upwards of half an hour on an average workday playing, researching, or discussing fantasy sports.
• Those in upper management positions wasting $9,797 worth of their employer’s money annually, on average.
• Entry-level employees and associates who played fantasy football on their boss’s dime cost companies $4,896 annually, on average.
• 17 percent of men and 27 percent of women preferred tracking the performances of their fantasy football or basketball teams over having sex.
• Fans also sacrificed family meals (30%) and plans with friends (27%) to focus on fantasy sports.
• More than 7 in 10 partners who shared a love of fantasy sports saw an improvement in their relationship during the season.
• Of those whose partners didn’t play with them, 73 percent said their relationship worsened during the fantasy season.
• The average payout for a fantasy football victory was nearly $500 – and around $300 for basketball.
• 1 in 3 players receive no punishment or an informal reprimand, only 12 percent of fantasy sports participants receive a suspension, demotion, or pay dock for playing at work.
• Respondents who faced a punishment for placing last in their league admitted to dedicating a larger chunk of company time to fantasy success.
