When a Star's Autograph Fuels Addiction: FanDuel's Troubling Playbook

Sometimes the most damaging part of an addiction isn’t the substance itself—it’s the machinery that keeps feeding it. That’s the uncomfortable reality at the heart of a lawsuit against FanDuel, where a personalized video message from Philadelphia Phillies star Bryce Harper became exhibit A in what one agent is calling“bad for sports.”

Terry Thompson gambled $18.5 million with FanDuel since 2020. He lost roughly $2 million of it. To cover those losses, he took out second and third mortgages on his home, which eventually fell into foreclosure. He sold shares of an investment company. His therapist became so alarmed about his mental state that police were dispatched to his residence. Eventually, Thompson checked into a psychiatric facility for treatment.

FanDuel’s response? A personalized video from Bryce Harper wishing Thompson an“extra special Thanksgiving”and mentioning his young son by name. The clip came courtesy of FanDuel’s VIP treatment program—the same perks that had been dangling Super Bowl tickets and high-end champagne in front of Thompson as his losses mounted. It’s not just corporate negligence; it’s corporate negligence with a celebrity stamp on it.

Here’s where it gets legally murky: MLB allows athletes to appear in gambling company advertisements as long as they don’t encourage betting on baseball itself. Technically, Harper’s message clears that bar. But the Philadelphia Inquirer couldn’t find another example of an active professional athlete sending such a personalized message to a gambling customer, which should tell you something about how far outside the norm this is. Even Patrick Mahomes’agent, Leigh Steinberg, felt compelled to weigh in, calling the video“bad for sports.”

The lawsuit against FanDuel is still pending. What’s not pending is the question it raises: How much access should betting companies have to celebrity content when they’re specifically targeting people they know are losing massive sums of money? The video wasn’t sent to a casual player enjoying a fun weekend. It was sent to a man whose addiction had already triggered a mental health crisis. FanDuel knew exactly who Terry Thompson was, and what they did with that knowledge matters.