Witness list named for DFS congressional hearing

Next Wednesday’s Congressional hearing on daily fantasy sports (see previous reports) will hear testimony from an impressive witness list…but according to ESPN sources DraftKings and FanDuel have declined to appear, along with the NFL, NBA, MLB and NHL.

In a tweet Friday ESPN’s usually reliable writer David Purdum noted:

“FanDuel, DraftKings, NFL, NBA, MLB and NHL were invited to testify at Congressional hearing on daily fantasy. All declined, per source.”

Among thos who have agreed to appear before the House Subcommittee on Commerce, Manufacturing, and Trade are:

* Steve Brubaker, Executive Director, Small Business Fantasy Sports Trade Association – an Illinois lobbyist working for smaller DFS providers;

* Kurt Eggert, Professor of Law, Chapman University Fowler School of Law and a specialist in gambling regulation;

* Jordan Gnat, Senior Vice President, Strategic Business Development, Scientific Games and an executive well versed in Intenret gaming;

* John M. McManus, Executive Vice President, General Counsel and Secretary, MGM Resorts International a land casino representative expected to be broadly in support of DFS;

* Ryan Rodenberg, Assistant Professor, Department of Sport Management, Florida State University – he’s an expert on federal sports wagering law;

* Peter Schoenke, President, Rotowire.com, Chairman, Fantasy Sports Trade Association – a trade body for DFS providers;

* Lindsay Slader, Operations Manager, GeoComply – a geo-location technology provider;

* Mark Locke, CEO, Genius Sports, a provider of sports data and technology.