Sept 17, V7N - The Major League Baseball (MLB) players' union has filed lawsuits against major sports betting companies, including DraftKings, FanDuel, bet365, and Underdog Fantasy, accusing them of using players' names and likenesses without permission. The suits, filed in federal court in Philadelphia and state court in Manhattan, seek compensatory and punitive damages, alleging violations of state laws protecting players' rights to control the commercial use of their identities.

The MLB players argue that sports betting platforms are exploiting their images to enhance consumer appeal, despite the fact that betting primarily relies on statistical data rather than players' physical likenesses. The union emphasizes that athletes should retain control over how their images are used to avoid associations with companies or products they may not support.

This legal action follows a similar lawsuit by the NFL players' union against DraftKings over the unauthorized use of NFL player likenesses in non-fungible tokens (NFTs). The MLB players noted that the sports betting platforms do not use NFL player likenesses, which raises questions about the differential treatment of baseball players.

As of now, none of the defendants, including DraftKings, FanDuel, bet365, or Underdog Fantasy, have responded to the lawsuits. The cases represent a broader effort by professional athletes to protect their image rights in the growing online sports betting industry.

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