"And it challenges all these athletes who feel like little kids again. Like, ‘Oh, I haven’t had to play hockey in a while, or I haven’t had to kick field goals.’ And because it’s all those new skills, it’s super compelling for the fans and the athletes competing. And the prizes are no joke." In addition, NHL players Jack Hughes, Quinn Hughes and Brock Nelson, who also won gold at the 2026 Winter Olympics, and Hockey Hall of Famer Henrik Lundqvist and Washington Capitals captain Alex Ovechkin, the NHL’s all-time goals leader, will be some of the hockey players in attendance throughout the weekend. "How do you do something that is a competition that gets athletes to go experience all of the different leagues at Fanatics Fest? The experience of Fanatics Fest is it’s all sports in all these leagues. And so how do we kind of create something that sits across all of it? So, that’s how it started."
After three days of competition, the Games concluded Sunday with a Closing Ceremony hosted by Noah Eagle, Jeff Ross, and Fanatics CEO Michael Rubin. Some of the biggest names participating included last year’s champion Tom Brady, David Ortiz, Cooper Flagg, John Cena, and dozens of other stars from across the sports and entertainment worlds. For the 2026 edition of the action-packed weekend, more than 200,000 fans made their way to the Jacob Javits Center for one of the world’s largest sports festivals. In its third year, Fanatics Fest delivered its biggest event yet. Ben Burrows is a reporter and editor for cllct, the premier company for collectible culture. If no fan places among the top three, the highest-scoring fan will receive $100,000 in cash.
- Applications can be submitted via the Fanatics Games website or by posting a video to social media using #FanaticsGames.
- Fanatics Games will bring together 50 everyday fans and a total group of 50 athletes, celebrities and creators once more, and they plan on making the competition bigger, faster and more competitive than it was in 2025.
- In December 2020, Fanatics acquired WinCraft, a licensed hard goods and promotional products company, which increased the company’s presence with non-apparel merchandise.
- Fanatics Sports & Casino brings the full Fanatics gaming and prediction markets experience together in one place.
- Fans will have a chance to compete in sport-specific challenges tied directly to how the 2026 Fanatics Games format will work at the festival from July 16-19.
Rather than keeping the entire payout, Bieber donated $10,000 to each of the 50 fans who competed and gave the remaining $500,000 to charity, drawing a loud ovation from the crowd. For his WWE Entrance challenge, Bieber surprised fans by singing his hit song “Yukon,” ensuring his victory. His entry into the game was a surprise to Rubin, who was notified on Friday that he was willing to participate, as he was in New York for his highly anticipated halftime performance at the World Cup Final on Sunday.
Mahomes, Brown Among Multi-Sport Super Bowl Stars
Applications can be submitted via the Fanatics Games website or by posting a video to social media using #FanaticsGames. Top finishers from 2025, including reigning champ Tom Brady, second place finisher and UFC fighter Justin Gaethje, and fan champion Matt Dennish to compete Stream every moment on YouTube and Twitch, with the Fanatics Games Sports Desk bringing you play-by-play coverage and commentary from wherever you are. Grab a seat in our dedicated fan viewing area and bleachers, with scoreboards available so you never miss a play. Test your accuracy across five increasingly challenging hockey shots.
Fanatics estimates it will take each competitor about an hour to complete all eight challenges. A total of 50 athletes and celebrities are expected to face off against fans. Depending on your location, you can bet, play or trade, all in the same app, with the same account. Submit your application here and/or post your video to social media using #FanaticsGames. Fanatics Markets, a prediction-market platform developed in partnership with Crypto.com, was launched in December 2025 and made available in 24 states. Fanatics launched its first retail sportsbook in January 2023 in Northwest Stadium (formerly FedEx Field), establishing the NFL’s first sportsbook inside a stadium.
Players face five putts at increasing distances on a sloped green, culminating in a bonus Money Ball putt worth 5 points. Perfect accuracy can earn a maximum score of 15 points. The MoneyPuck(40ft) is worth 5 points. Shots 1-2 (15ft) are worth 2 points or Shots 3-4 (30ft) are worth 3 points.
NFL Power Rankings Week 8: Does Anyone Want To Be The Best Team In Football?
Show us who you are by submitting a 2-3 minute video that captures your spirit, your competitive edge, and your connection to your team and sport. In November 2025, Fanatics announced a 10-year partnership with OBB Media as the producer and content partner of Fanatics Fest. Fanatics Events co-hosts WWE World, an interactive fan experience, which was most recently held at the Las Vegas Convention Center as part of WrestleMania 41 in April 2025.
Shoot & Score
Gold-medal winning defenseman Megan Keller of the United States women’s Olympic hockey team will also be in the competition. Each person’s six-best scores among the eight events were counted, with the winner getting $1 million cash, second place getting a Ferrari 812 GTS, and third a LeBron James graded rookie card (worth around $250,000). “What made Fanatics Games special in year one was seeing fans and world-class athletes compete side by side under the same rules and feed off each other’s energy,” said Lance Fensterman, CEO of Fanatics Events. The 2026 competition will award $1 million to the overall champion, with additional high-value prizes distributed among top finishers as part of the $2 million total prize pool.
Fanatics’ Betting and Gaming CEO Matt King discusses the company’s newly launched all-in-one app, which combines sports betting, casino, and prediction markets. Each participant will compete in eight challenges for a maximum of 100 points available for each. Each challenge will be overseen by a Fanatics Games official referee who will handle scoring and enforce rules. Participants will move through the challenges in pairs similar to golf but always compete individually.
What to include in Your Video:
The company later expanded into e-commerce and was eventually acquired by Michael Rubin’s GSI Commerce, which later became Fanatics, Inc. Dive in with new Player Pages and Stats experiences that incorporate EDGE Advanced Stats; "How to Watch" to help navigate your tune-in choices; Live Activities/Live Updates to set-and-forget for as many teams as you want, plus a whole lot more. "And for us, the focus on that was this is a sporting event that people should want to watch. This is something that’s exciting, and it’s something that, honestly, it’s like a golf tournament. You’re not able to be at all 18 holes at once, so it become a much better TV or streaming experience." The scoring will also be out of 10 instead of 100 this year, and the entire event will be available for fans to watch (youtube.com/fanatics/live) if they can’t attend, with talent such as Noah Eagle, Matthew Berry, Maria Taylor and Chiney Ogwumike.
Fanatics Events
Early putts are worth 2 points each, longer putts are worth 3 points each, and a flawless round can produce a perfect score of 15 points. A perfect pitching performance results in the maximum 15-point score. Knock down shots from around the arc and chase the perfect score. Watch the Fanatics social media channels for further information on the Fanatics Games. Submit the video via the Fanatics app or on any Fanatics social media channel with the hashtag #FanaticsGames to be given consideration for one of 50 available participant spots. Other Fanatics Casino Games competitions will include golf shot accuracy and soccer goal scoring.
Candy Digital secured an exclusive, long-term agreement with MLB as its first content partner. In May 2021, Rubin co-founded the digital collectibles company Candy Digital with Mike Novogratz and Gary Vaynerchuk. In March 2021, Fanatics secured a $320 million funding round, followed by another $325 million in August 2021 that brought the company’s valuation to $18 billion as of September 2021. Using the new funds, Fanatics purchased assets from Vetta Brands, including leading collegiate headwear producer Top of the World. In August 2020, the company secured $350 million Series E funding raising Fanatics’ valuation to $6.2 billion. Also in 2020, Fanatics established the All-In Challenge Foundation, which would continue to be the philanthropic arm of the company.
Game Winner Challenge
The top 10 finishers from the 2025 Fanatics Games are expected to compete once again, including Tom Brady, the inaugural winner, last year’s runner-up, UFC fighter Justin Gaethje, and reigning “fan champion” Matt Dennish. The 2026 Fanatics Games will once again feature fans competing alongside elite athletes under the same scoring system and format. Fanatics has announced the return of Fanatics Games at Fanatics Fest 2026, bringing back its high-stakes, cross-sport competition where everyday fans go head-to-head with some of the biggest names in sports for a $1 million grand prize when the world’s #1 sports fan festival returns to the Javits Center in New York City from July 16–19, 2026. A perfect performance delivers the maximum score of 15 points.
The inaugural Fanatics Events was organized in partnership with IMG as part of WrestleMania XL and included programming with athletes, entertainers, and internet creators. The platform allows users to trade on the outcome of real-world events, including sports results, political decisions, economics indicators, and cultural events. In December 2025, Fanatics Betting & Gaming partnered with OpenBet, a betting technology provider, to implement geolocation, fraud prevention, anti-money laundering (AML), and responsible gaming tools on its sportsbook platform. The division launched a standalone online casino service, Fanatics Casino, in May 2025. Following its 2024 acquisition of PointsBet, Fanatics announced that its Fanatics Sportsbook would be available to approximately 95% of the addressable online sports bettor market in the U.S.
