DraftKings settles MLB players' lawsuit over use of likenesses on betting site
By Blake Brittain
April 7 (Reuters) - Major League Baseball's players union has settled a lawsuit against DraftKings DKNG.O that accused the online sports-betting giant of misusing the names and likenesses of hundreds of MLB players on its platform without permission.
U.S. District Judge Karen Marston in Philadelphia dismissed the case on Monday after the parties told her they had reached a settlement. Details of the settlement were not publicly available, and spokespeople for DraftKings and the players union did not immediately respond to requests for comment and more information on Tuesday.
The union sued DraftKings and the company's chief rival FanDuel in 2024, arguing they violated the rights of nearly all active MLB players by using their names, images and likenesses on their betting platforms without a license. FanDuel settled the lawsuit against it later that year.
DraftKings responded that it did not violate the players' publicity rights because it provides the same "newsworthy" statistics, betting odds and other information as traditional media outlets using athlete names and likenesses.
Marston rejected DraftKings' bid to dismiss the union's lawsuit at an early stage of the case last year.
DraftKings was separately sued by the National Collegiate Athletic Association last month over its alleged misuse of trademarks related to the "March Madness" college basketball championships. That case is still ongoing.
The MLBPA case is MLB Players Inc v. DraftKings Inc, U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, No. 2:24-cv-04884.
For the MLBPA: Jeffrey Kessler, David Greenspan and Diana Leiden of Winston & Strawn
For DraftKings: Megan Bannigan, David Bernstein and Jared Kagan of Debevoise & Plimpton
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