Bryce Harpers beef with FanDuel could end up in

Two lawsuits already serve as backdrops to the unseemly sequence of occasions that led to Bryce Harper sending Thanksgiving needs on behalf of FanDuel to an admitted sports activities playing addict.

Could there be a third?

Legal consultants say Harper may need grounds to sue FanDuel for false endorsement, misappropriation and invasion of privateness.

The Philadelphia Phillies’ All-Star first baseman said in a assertion posted on Instagram that he created a personalised 21-second video on behalf of FanDuel but wouldn’t have accomplished so had he recognized the online sportsbook allegedly supposed to use it to entice VIP buyer Terry Thompson to continue playing.

“I did not know FanDuel would do this,” Harper wrote. “I did not consent to it, and FanDuel had no right to do it.”

Harper said he acquired a request on Cameo in November 2024 to read a message supplied by FanDuel VIP host Bryttanni Morgan for a personal “holiday video for Terry.”

“Hey, Terry? What’s up, brother? Hey, man, your host Bryttanni from FanDuel wanted to make sure your Thanksgiving was extra special,” Harper says in the video.

Thompson sued FanDuel, Morgan, DraftKings and the NFL in March, alleging that the sportsbooks precipitated him to lose about $1.6 million while betting an estimated $18.5 million over a four-year period.

“Had I known FanDuel’s true intent, I would not have made the video,” Harper said. “The same is true had I known anything about Terry or his situation, or about any alleged ‘partnership’ between Cameo and FanDuel.”

The lawsuit filed by the nonprofit Public Health Advocacy Institute on behalf of Thompson and fellow gambler Christopher Sage alleges that FanDuel and DraftKings deliberately fostered dependancy by offering enticements such as Super Bowl tickets, lodge lodging and access to athletes and celebrities.

Thompson said his home fell into foreclosures after he took out second and third mortgages. He borrowed money from household and mates and burned through his financial savings, shedding his last $10,000 on a DraftKings parlay guess in February.

He describes in the lawsuit feeling so determined that he reached out to his therapist, who called police officers to his home to forestall him from harming himself.

Sportico legal analyst Michael McCann wrote that Harper seemingly has grounds to sue FanDuel over the video.

Harper, a nine-time All-Star and two-time most helpful participant, has earned almost $252 million in wage over his 15-year MLB profession and is owed another $75 million before his contract expires after the 2031 season. He also earns about $9 million a 12 months in endorsements, according to Sportico.

In a legal motion, Harper could search financial damages by alleging that the video tarnished his fame. The notion that he urged a playing addict to continue harmful habits could negatively have an effect on his means to land endorsement offers.

“Section 43(a) of the federal Lanham Act prohibits false endorsements, including when a business draws from an athlete’s NIL and other identifying characteristics without permission,” McCann wrote. “There can be a viable claim when that unauthorized use leads consumers to believe the athlete endorses the business’s product or service.

“Harper could also sue over unauthorized use of his name, image, voice and other uniquely identifying features. To that end, he could argue the video constitutes misappropriation or invasion of privacy.”

FanDuel, in flip, could counter by declaring that Harper agreed to create the video as half of his relationship with Cameo, a company that connects followers with celebrities and creators for personalised digital interactions.

“False endorsement and misappropriation, FanDuel could insist, are inapplicable to a personalized video setting where the video’s talent voluntarily assents in exchange for compensation,” McCann wrote. “Further, FanDuel could assert that Harper was, or should have been, aware of a potential connection between the video and FanDuel and, more generally, sports betting.”

FanDuel issued a assertion after the Harper video got here to mild in an investigative story revealed July 9 in the Philadelphia Inquirer.

“We are committed to fostering a culture of responsible gaming and protecting our customers,” the assertion said. “Unlike illegal offshore sportsbooks, FanDuel employees are trained to recognize and flag signs of problem gambling and offer resources and tools, and we continue to review and strengthen our policies to ensure we have the industry’s strongest consumer protection initiatives.”

FanDuel and DraftKings, the main sportsbooks since the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in 2018 that states could legalize sports activities betting, have developed profitable partnerships with leagues in all major sports activities. The 2022 MLB collective bargaining settlement opened the door for gamers to do promotional work for sportsbooks.

Yet the collaborations haven’t come without issues. The MLB gamers union’s licensing and advertising arm filed a lawsuit in 2024 that accused DraftKings, FanDuel and Bet365 of utilizing without permission or compensation pictures of gamers on its betting app and in social media posts.

Coincidentally, Harper turned embroiled in that lawsuit, in which the plaintiffs pointed to photographs of Harper’s face on the DraftKings app as evidence. The two sides reached a settlement in April forward of trial.