DraftKings and FanDuel Reject Use of Consumer Law in Philadelphia Addiction Lawsuit

DraftKings and FanDuel are trying to shut down a lawsuit from two former gamblers who say the companies’ apps fueled their gambling addictions.

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In new filings, both sportsbooks argue the plaintiffs picked the wrong law to build their case. They say Pennsylvania’s consumer protection statute doesn’t apply to how their platforms operate, and that the men cannot use it to claim the apps caused their addictions.

DraftKings lawyers laid out their position in a 106‑page objection, stressing that the company offers a free app and shouldn’t be treated like a seller of a defective product. FanDuel filed a similar 106‑page response, stating, “FanDuel provides a free online application.” 

“FanDuel is not a ‘seller,’ and its application is not a ‘product’ subject to product liability claims under Pennsylvania law.”

The lawsuit, brought by Christopher Sage and Terry Thompson, targets the two biggest U.S. sportsbooks along with the NFL and Genius Sports. It first landed in court in March and was updated last month. 

Sportsbooks argue that Sage and Thompson waited to long

The timing of the lawsuit has become a major point of friction. DraftKings says the case should not move forward because, in its view, both men knew about their gambling problems, and what caused them, long before they filed their complaint in March 2026. They both argued that the two‑year statute of limitations shuts the door on their claims.

Sage and Thompson’s lawsuit centers on microbetting, with their lawyers accusing DraftKings and FanDuel of using mobile technology and AI to turn those in‑game bets into an addictive product and push customers toward nonstop wagering.  

According to the complaint, Thompson focused almost entirely on NFL microbets, placing about $23 million in wagers and losing nearly $1.9 million. Sage’s losses across both apps exceeded $170,000. 

The case drew wider attention after reports that a FanDuel VIP host arranged a Bryce Harper Cameo video for Thompson, a detail that surfaced in The Philadelphia Inquirer’s coverage.

“Due to the known and unique ability of such high-speed, fast-resolving wagers to hijack gamblers’ brains and keep them immersed in ceaseless betting action, DraftKings and FanDuel have implemented various product features designed to drive customers toward microbetting,” the complaint stated.

FanDuel wants the case to go to arbitration 

FanDuel and DraftKings both say a Pennsylvania courtroom is the wrong place for this fight. 

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In their filings, they argue that state lawmakers gave the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board sole authority over sports betting and other regulated gambling, and that private lawsuits for damages should not be used to challenge those rules.

FanDuel’s brief put it clealy, saying “Plaintiffs are free to disagree with and even challenge the General Assembly’s policy choices, but not by way of a private civil suit for damages,” and warned the court against using consumer protection law to “undercut careful legislative and regulatory determinations.”

FanDuel then pushed its argument further by asking to move the case out of court entirely. In a separate motion, the company said the dispute belongs in arbitration under its terms and conditions. 

According to FanDuel’s lawyers, Sage and Thompson accepted those terms when they opened their accounts and did so again each time the rules were updated, 15 times in total. Thompson last clicked to approve the updated agreement on Dec. 16, 2025, roughly 14 weeks before the initial complaint was filed.

Genius and NFL request to be excused from case, denies direct connection

The NFL and Genius Sports both say they should not be dragged into the Philadelphia addiction lawsuit. Genius Sports, which supplies real-time NFL statistics to sportsbooks, insists it has no role in the men’s losses or addictions. 

The company’s lawyers say the chain between its data feed and the plaintiffs’ gambling is too stretched to support liability. 

“Proximate causation is independently lacking because the causal chain between Genius’s supply of sports data and Plaintiffs’ gambling losses is too remote and attenuated,” the filing states, noting that “Multiple independent actors and decisions fall along the causal pathway, including DraftKings’ and FanDuel’s app design choices and, most importantly, Plaintiffs’ own repeated, voluntary decisions to wager.” 

In its filing, the league also argues it is only “an indirect licensor of raw data and statistics” and has no direct link to Sage or Thompson.

The NFL says being forced to defend “a sprawling, 13-count tort action” would violate its due process rights under the 14th Amendment, even though the plaintiffs sued in part because the league earns money from selling game data. 

All four defendants have now asked the court to dismiss the lawsuit, and according to the court’s schedule, attorneys for Sage and Thompson have until Aug. 5 to answer the arguments from the NFL, Genius Sports, and the other defendants. 

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Source: Gambling Insider