How Is Fantasy Football Having A Major Effect On Your Workplace?

Whether you call yourself The Credit Cruncherz or Habeas SCOREpus, you may know you’re gonna totally crush your coworkers in this year’s office fantasy football league. But what you might not know is that this friendly or not-so-friendly competition is actually making your office a better place to work.

How is your office Fantasy Football league changing anything about your work experience?

1. Improving office morale

Let’s face it— people love a little competition, especially when it means they can beat their boss without facing repercussions! UK-based HR and employment law company Peninsula did a study that found 62% of employees found their involvement in an office fantasy football league boosted their morale. The competitive nature of office leagues creates a buzz in the office setting that gives people the perfect thing to chat about around the water cooler.

2. Building your professional reputation

The way you act during the draft says a lot about you. While it may not seem like that big of a deal, you can actually use your league to enhance your reputation with your colleagues. Fantasy football can be used as a tool to show coworkers, especially those who you don’t interact with often in the office, how you act under pressure, how you handle successes or defeats, and how you strategize. If you blow people away by your fun football banter coupled with your sportsmanship and respect, you’re helping yourself professionally, too.

3. Forming relationships with coworkers

When you go head-to-head against Phillip in the Sales department or Susan in accounting on Sunday, you of course need to swing by his desk the next day to talk about your standoff! By giving people a way to connect outside of the office setting, more substantial relationships can be built. The league provides a topic of conversation and a reason to communicate with peers. It can be incredibly helpful in companies with many distinct departments, companies with employees spread out geographically, or companies with newer staff. A fantasy football league provides a natural, fun space for employees to bond without forced team building activities or networking events.

4. Building company unity

A Quantum Workplace survey found that employees playing in a fantasy league with coworkers have higher scores on survey items measuring teamwork and trust with coworkers. Jason Lauritsen, director of Best Places to Work at Quantum Workplace, said “Sometimes something as simple as an office fantasy football league is a way to bring together your people and build engagement.” By adding an office league to a company, coworkers have something that brings them together that’s more than just their common employer; now they also have a love of the game!

Of course there are negatives to adding fantasy football into the work equation, but the camaraderie and morale-boosting elements of the game are not something to overlook. Football season is a way for management to create a space that will better the work environment.

…but just wait until March Madness rolls along!