Fantasy Sports Blogger

Really, there is much to like about Yahoo’s league hosting site and it keeps getting better.  Let’s start with the creation of the league.  If you click this link, it will take you straight to the signup page.  It allows you to jump right in and start a league.  After a few basic inputs, it takes you to the main league page and allows you to invite your friends.  There are several items to set up next like league type, scoring, schedule, transaction methodology.  But after a short configuration time of maybe 30 minutes, you are ready to go.  Set up your draft type and style and invite your friends.  It’s easy for them to join by following the links on email they receive.  There are a couple of draft options, live or automated through pre-set rankings.  They both work well depending on your league’s availability to get together.  As you work your way through the season, you’ll notice there are not too many bells and whistles but the site works well in my opinion.

There have been a few upgrades to the free version in the last year.  You now get real-time stat tracking for free instead of the old $10 price tag.  There’s also a new mock drafting application that allows you to participate in or review other mock drafts.  I can’t think of a better improvement than that one.  Yahoo has thrown in some better customization options for number of divisions, custom schedules and new waiver options.

My favorite functionality of the Yahoo tool though is the profile application.  If you use the same profile for all of your leagues (football or any other sport), it will provide you significant historical information about all of the leagues you have participated in as well as a link to the archive of the league’s season.  I love looking back at all those awards!!

Now for those that are interested, Yahoo also offers Yahoo Fantasy Football PLUS ’09.  It’s an extension of the free site that also includes a free draft kit and scouting report information.  Basically, you’re getting a $5 discount on those items as the team price is $15 and the league pays $30 for the hosting fees. There are some other enticements like expedited customer service, preferred drafting times and a t-shirt for your champion.

Personally, my recommendation is to take full advantage of the free site and allow your league members if they want to purchase any of the add-ons.  Quite frankly, they’ll probably be playing in a few Yahoo leagues as it is and will get great use out of their investment in the scouting report.

See you tomorrow with another review.