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I think it's safe to say none of us were hoping this day would come, but after some ominous warning signs began to surface toward the end of the last Premier League campaign, today we have official confirmation from Yahoo that their fantasy Premier League game has been discontinued.
The news is hardly unexpected at this point, as speculation has been rampant online about the death of the once fantastic fantasy format that had been the cornerstone of our blog coverage since its inception. How the news arrived is a little surprising, though, with Yahoo making an update to their announcement canceling their Major League Soccer fantasy game back in April rather than delivering a new statement.
We were alerted to the change on Twitter by Raul Diez, whose original tweet was followed up with a screenshot of the post by one of NMA's founding members, Nik Argiropoulos:
Yep this looks like the official announcement, well spotted @RaulDiDel @NMA_Blog @Rotoworld_PL pic.twitter.com/2Ww1VjXXJx
— Nik Argiropoulos (@nikarg) July 9, 2015
As you can see, it's not just the Fantasy Premier League game that's going by the wayside; it will be joined by the other European fantasy games Yahoo offered. It's not all doom and gloom, though; there are already plans in the works for NMA to provide coverage of alternative fantasy games next season.
In addition, there was a small glimmer of hope provided by Yahoo to another of our Twitter followers, Namu Yoon, who reached out on Yahoo's suggestion forum to ask them to reconsider:
Would love to see EPL, La Liga and MLS back in @YahooFantasy this year. cc @NMA_Blog @Rotoworld_PL @nikarg #YFF pic.twitter.com/BdAuQ1NBUZ
— Namu Yoon (@BBSC_SeoulBro) July 9, 2015
The big takeaway from that comment is that Yahoo is planning on bringing the game back at some point in the future. Whether that means they will use the same format as before or move to a new system remains to be seen, but it is ultimately encouraging to know they are working on a new offering, and also (hopefully) taking the time necessary to ensure the new game is stable and error-free before rolling it out to the public.
For the time being, though, we'll forge ahead with private leagues for you to join on Fantrax, Perfect XI and the official FPL game for this season with a hopeful eye on next season for a refreshed offering from Yahoo.
We'll have league codes for you in the near future for each of the other platforms, so check back in soon and get ready to compete in another season of fantasy Premier League!