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Phenoms going under (1 Viewer)

JohnW1970

Footballguy
Have to say I didn't see this one coming. Sucks as I am in the final 4 of one of the omega phenom's leagues.

It is with deep regret that I inform you that Phenom Enterprises, LLC, ('Phenoms') will be unable to meet the full prize money obligations for the 2014 football season, barring any last minute deals. A portion should be available, estimated to be between 20 and 40%.

In November of 2013, Phenoms hired a web development company to develop a full fantasy league hosting platform. This software development would eliminate the need for Phenoms to use Myfantasyleague, Fantrax, and ESPN to handle drafts, auctions, and league management. The idea was to deliver an excellent web experience. The developer's estimate for the project was $200,000, an amount affordable to Phenoms, and was to be completed prior to 2014's football season. So far, the project has exceeded $630,000 in development costs, and is still not complete (despite being several months behind schedule). It is Phenoms' opinion that if the site had been completed in time and on-budget, Phenoms would have had no trouble meeting the financial commitments of the company and would continue to be a profitable operation for many years to come. Phenoms is weighing legal action against the developer.

In order to fix the problems caused by the delay in the site, Phenoms has conducted an extensive search to find interested investors to provide Phenoms with a capital infusion. Despite numerous meetings and serious discussions, Phenoms has not been able to secure funding. Barring any last-minute deal, Phenoms will be forced to sell off the software code that has been written and the player database to reduce the shortfall in prize money. If anyone has any interest in taking over Phenoms as-is or buying the software, please email me immediately. This is not an offer to sell or a solicitation of investment, merely a request for interested parties to contact me to learn more.

Before the end of the month, Phenoms will provide you with additional information regarding these matters. At that time, information will be made available regarding the claiming of prize money and deposits, the future of the dynasty/keeper style leagues, and the ongoing NBA and NHL leagues. It is expected that NBA and NHL leagues will be canceled with entry fees refunded. Dynasty/keeper league deposits may be refunded in full. You may email me with any questions or concerns. I will maintain open lines of communication throughout the winding down process.

As the owner and manager of Phenoms, I take ultimate responsibility for all that has transpired. You were counting on the prize money. You encouraged friends to join, putting your own reputation on the line. You have spent time managing and building your fantasy teams. I am deeply sorry that Phenoms has failed you. I can only ask for your forgiveness.

Sincerely,
Michael Zangrilli

 
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Just got the email, too. Not pleased. I am in the playoffs in three of five leagues and was counting on a nice little cash injection here next month from winnings. I have a feeling he is gonna have a lot of pissed off people, and I wonder what the legal ramifications could be if some decide to go after their winnings legally.

 
I had 18 redrafts this year and am in the playoffs in 11, including making it to the final 4 in one of the 72 team Omega's. I am speechless.

 
Yeah, this is very disappointing. I'm still alive in 8 of my 14 phenoms leagues. I guess we'll have to wait and see what percentage is paid out.

There is no excuse for this. Depositors money should have been kept in an escrow account separate from his operating expenses and should never have been used to pay his software development costs.

 
This is right up there with AntSports...can anything legally be done?

Like the OP, I'm in 3 leagues and in the playoffs in all 3...this really sucks!!!

 
Looks like he got tired of paying MyFantasyLeague all those hosting fees and tried to build the capability to do that himself.

He had a good thing going. I guess he wanted more.

 
Looks like he got tired of paying MyFantasyLeague all those hosting fees and tried to build the capability to do that himself.

He had a good thing going. I guess he wanted more.
Well then you use the 10-20% you're taking off the top and find investors if that won't cover everything.I can't believe he would use the prize pool.

 
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I know he's a member here. I'd like to know when he realized he was going under. If it was prior to taking people's money for the 2014 season, he's a crook. I understand things happen, but telling people the first week of the playoffs that he's shutting down is unreal.

 
This is ridiculous. All prize money should be kept in escrow and use his profits use for project development. I get that he has to pay NFL money for each league he puts out there but if you want to go get a better price talk to MFL or create a software that doesn't cost $600,000 when you originally contracted for $200k? Why give more than the $200K? Sure projects go over budget but over 300%? I love "I'm considering legal action line" lol.

This is bull####

 
Very rough math...looks like he's holding about 700k to a million for football leagues alone.

700-1000 leagues

approx $100 buyin

12 teams per

 
I saw his Twitter was gone too. Mike has always been a great commish. I hate to hear this. I didn't receive the email though.

 
I'm pretty shocked. I referred so many friends to Phenoms based on what an honest, reliable, and first-class organization it seemed to be. Wow.

 
If I recoup my basketball entry fee and keeper deposit for football, I will be satisfied at this point. I picked a good year to suck at football. I'm only in the playoffs in one cheap league.

 
I'm in the final 4 of a $200 dynasty league. I didn't even get an email. What a crock of sh!t. How could you possibly pull the plug on everyone right now. He's been a fine commissioner but if he had any idea he was up the creek over the summertime, the plug should have been pulled then. Wow. Just wow.

 
I really regret the loss of my teams. Obsessing on dynasty draft picks and keeper auction salary caps makes the long boring off-season a little more bearable.

 
I kept getting emails last year putting of the Beta testing he was working on. He wanted a group of guys to try out his new site and work through and work out the bugs that we noticed.

He had to know about it around then because we were never summoned to do the beta testing. I think that was August

 
This is BS. He's already making profit off every league by keeping his commission 10%-20%. If he dipped into the escrow money then he's a crook. Whether he just stole all the money and ran or if this BS software story is legit he's a dirtbag Ponzi schemer. I joined 4 dynasty leagues there and one high stakes league. I better get my $ back.

 
I'ts just so hard to trust people. He seemed like a truly good guy. I guess I was brought up in a time where your word actually meant something though. Oh well wasn't the first time and am sure it won't be the last fantasy league I've gotten scruud on. Hope you spend my dough on something nice Mike. Merry Christmas.

 
Ghost Rider said:
Just got the email, too. Not pleased. I am in the playoffs in three of five leagues and was counting on a nice little cash injection here next month from winnings. I have a feeling he is gonna have a lot of pissed off people, and I wonder what the legal ramifications could be if some decide to go after their winnings legally.
Any legal orientated FBGers out there that could shed some light on this possibility? Are there grounds for a class action?

 
He probably fled the country already. I'm glad I didn't sign up. That sucks for those who probably won't get any money.

 
Last year I lost money with AntSports, so I searched for other sites that were deemed reputable and joined Leagues in Phenoms and Masters. Now Phenoms is doing just what Antsports did last year. Two years in a row, I sure hope Master's doesn't fold as well.

I don't buy the software (SW) story either. I am a certified project manager, and in no way would a SW project be allowed to balloon out of control like he is claiming. Even if he would have gotten the site up and running, how would he have paid the prize money out if he dipped into it to pay for the SW.

Bad, Bad business move. Eventually both Steve (Antsports) and Mike will be called to the carpet and will need to answer to folks with the proper authority. The down side is that people like this are the ones that force laws to be created to make it harder for us to play FF or poker online.

 
I'm in 8 Dynasty semi-finals and have 12 deposits down. Aside from the money aspect which sucks I'll also really miss those leagues. Built some nice teams and liked the format a lot.

 
I think the chances of anyone seeing any money they are owed (deposits, prize, entry fees) again is about as high as his software developer story being true. Hope I'm wrong, but I'm betting any money already paid to this crook is long gone.

 
  1. [SIZE=16pt]History and Inspiration[/SIZE]
  2. Phenoms Fantasy Sports is owned and operated by Michael Zangrilli. (As of now, it's a one-man show) I started playing fantasy football in 1991 with my group of friends from school. Over the years, my enjoyment of fantasy football grew. With the dawn of Internet based leagues, I joined more and more leagues. Participating in multiple leagues can be very demanding due to the variety of rules. Joining Internet based leagues also carried the risk of not getting paid for winning, which happened to me in 2001. This inspired me to create the Greek Leagues. The Greek Leagues were leagues that I participated in as well as ran.
  3. In 2003, Footballguys.com approached me about running leagues for their website. We worked on a plan, but in the end, they decided against adding leagues to their website. I decided to continue what I had started by creating Phenoms Fantasy Football. The Greek Leagues laid the foundation, thus the Greek Letter naming system for the leagues.
  4. The goal of Phenoms Fantasy Football is to provide the absolute best fantasy football league experience. What is the best? In my mind, the key ingredients are high cash prize payouts, outstanding customer service, fair rules that promote skill and competition while maintaining league integrity, and a trustworthy Commissioner to oversee it all. These are the driving factors behind Phenoms FF. I hope you find the Phenoms Leagues to be very enjoyable, as many of the Phenoms FF and Greek Leagues participants have in the past.
  5. I'm always happy to receive feedback about the leagues, the site, or anything else you care to comment on.Drop me a line: commissioner@phenomsff.com
 
He probably ran the numbers, saw a year over year drop off in league entries and decided now was the best time to steal your $.

 
It just sounds like he has no clue how to run a business. Closing down his Twitter and Facebook accounts is weak.

 
I guess if you're going to drop a bomb like this, the day before fantasy playoffs is the day to do it.

Now I don't have to worry about Julio Jones this week.

 

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