Many soccer fans, both during their childhood and adulthood, have played Comunio, Biwenger, Liga Fantasy... They may not know it yet, but some of you have surely wondered, when did fantasy football begin? Who invented it?
Apps like Comunio, Biwenger, and the aforementioned Fantasy League have accompanied thousands of football fans in recent years, helping to foster a more passionate and competitive experience of the sport. Leagues are typically created in which groups of friends, coworkers, and families participate, and their daily use can even cause a rift in personal relationships. Aside from these types of "conflicts" purely created by rivalry, these apps help connect users 100% with the games, as the players' actual performance on the field directly impacts the points users receive in the app.
The origin of the "fantasy phenomenon" dates back to 1988, when Italian journalist Riccardo Albini had the idea of creating fantasy football, known in Italy as " Fantacalcio ." Albini bought the book "Fantasy Football" in Chicago, which explained the rules of an American game based on baseball statistics. When he read the book, he immediately thought it would be a great idea to develop the same game, but focused on football. During the 1988 European Championship, he began testing it in a bar. Two years later, he published the book " Serie A Fantacalcio " with updated rules, and the game grew rapidly. Its popularity was growing in Italy, and in 1994, La Gazzetta dello Sport approached the astute Albini about collaborating, a relationship that lasted several years. Later, Riccardo Albini and his partners sold the company to an even larger company. However, the fantasy phenomenon had already reached very high levels and its importance was paramount.
In Spain, fantasy football was born in 1994 with the Marca newspaper Liga Fantástica Marca, which enjoyed great popularity in the 1990s, when fans would create their lineups and send them by email or fax directly to the newspaper's editorial office. Every Monday, a ranking table was published, allowing users to check their current standings. Later, in 2002, registration for the Liga Fantástica Marca became available online.
Its popularity had waned until the Comunio app arrived in Spain in 2007. This app had been working with the German and Austrian leagues for several years and quickly became a real hit. Other apps such as Biwenger, Futmondo, and Liga Fantasy, among others, later arrived. The internet has played a fundamental role in the development and growth of these types of apps, which are increasingly gaining more users.
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