A compilation of 18 fantasy football punishments, ranging from mild to diabolical. Discourage tanking in your league and implement one of these for your league loser.
Fantasy football punishments tend to increase the fun of your league, unless you're the last place finisher who receives one. But they can also increase competitiveness by dissuading fantasy managers from sucking. This article outlines 18 creative, funny and sometimes diabolical ways to punish the loser of your fantasy football league.
What is a Fantasy Football Punishment?
Let’s start with a little clarification. A fantasy football punishment is reserved for the league member who finishes in last place in your fantasy football league.
In most fantasy seasons, there will be several teams in your fantasy league that already are out of playoff contention during the final few weeks. To ensure none of these struggling teams accept unfair trades or stop setting their weekly fantasy lineups, last place fantasy punishments were created.
Punishments can be time-consuming, humiliating or even painful, but they should always be hilarious. Their rise in popularity is likely due to the absurdity and humor these punishments deliver — both to the league and to the unsuspecting members of society who get to watch and observe.
18 of the Best Fantasy Football Punishments
The following list of funny fantasy football punishments is the reason you clicked on this article. Sit back, relax and do your absolute best to never finish in last place.
1. The Waffle House Challenge
Spend 24 hours in your local Waffle House. Each waffle eaten removes an hour from the clock, so eight waffles would allow you to leave after *only* 16 hours. This is the most well-known and popular fantasy football punishment because of the simple, yet cruel, nature of it.
If you don’t live near a Waffle House, head to a McDonald’s (Denny’s, IHOP or any 24-hour diner will do) and let the fantasy league vote on which menu item plays the role of the waffle.
2. Lemonade Stand
Open a neighborhood lemonade stand for a day and give all the profits to the winner of the league. Traditionally, you need to tell every customer that you finished in last place in your fantasy football league while serving them. For a cruel twist, pick out a silly outfit for them to wear and develop a creative excuse for why they’re doing a lemonade stand:
“This is my idea of a fun weekend!”
“It’s a down economy, so I’m doing what I can to stay afloat.”
3. Social Media Takeover
The league loser relinquishes full control of their social media accounts for a day, week or month. Leaguemates take turns creating funny Instagram or X posts for the duration of the punishment period. The last place finisher can only delete the posts after the punishment is over.
One common variant is forcing the loser to record and post a funny or embarrassing video each day on social media for an entire month. The entire league can then get in on the fun, each coming up with two or three humiliating video ideas to fill up the calendar.
4. Run a Race in Costume
Pick out a dinosaur, clown or other wild costume for the loser to wear then enter them into a 5k or 10k race. The length of the race can vary based on how extreme you want the punishment to be. Another wrinkle is making it an obstacle course, like a Spartan Race.
5. Stand Up Comedy Set
This is one of the longest-running — and most popular — fantasy football punishments, and it’s an easy way to make sure no one in your league wants to finish in last place. Make sure the entire league shows up to heckle the loser. Many say this is the worst fantasy football punishment because of its cringe-worthiness, but we’ll let you decide.
6. Fantasy Football Loser Trophy
The loser of the league must buy and then prominently display a custom loser trophy, at home or in their office. Sites like Trophy Smack offer a great selection of trophies and other gear.
7. Date Night From Hell
Go to a fancy restaurant nearby, but instead of an actual date, you’ll need to bring a stuffed animal or blow-up doll. Make sure the loser buys an appetizer, entree and dessert for their special guest, too. Inform the wait staff ahead of time about the occasion so they can join in on the roast.
8. Sing Karaoke (With a Twist)
The loser performs a song of the winner’s choice at an — ideally crowded — karaoke bar. For a sick twist, make the loser sing the same song every hour until either the bar closes or they’re booed off stage.
9. The Cardboard Sign
Here’s another classic. The loser has to write “I suck at fantasy football” on a large piece of cardboard and then display their makeshift sign in a public area. Vary the length of this punishment depending on how intense your fantasy league wants to be. We recommend at least two hours, though four to six hours is preferable. And don’t let the loser put earbuds in during the ordeal. It’s a punishment after all!
10. Body Waxing
Ever since the 40-Year-Old Virgin hit screens in 2005, the idea of a full body wax inspires sheer terror among men everywhere. The league’s loser gets their entire body — the back and chest will also suffice — waxed and posts a before and after picture on social media.
11. Get a Tattoo
This may be the worst fantasy football punishment due to its rather permanent nature.
Before the fantasy season begins, make sure your league sets the tattoo size parameters. Generally, a one inch square will suffice as the workable area.
The winner designs the tattoo, of course. The loser pays for said tattoo on their own body. The intensity of this punishment can be ratcheted up and down based on tattoo design, size, cost and body placement.
12. Take a Test
There are a wide variety of tests to choose from, but we recommend the SAT, ACT or GRE if you want to go the traditional route with this punishment. Another funny option is forcing the league loser to take a defensive driving course — traffic ticket not required.
13. Milk Mile
This simple, yet elegant, punishment only requires access to a standard high school track and plenty of milk. The loser runs a mile — four laps around the track — but must chug a glass of milk before each lap.
If your league is feeling particularly cruel, up this punishment to two miles. Still not difficult enough? Make the loser run the milk mile in the summer heat, immediately before next season’s annual fantasy draft kicks off. Capture it on film.
14. Charitable Donation
The loser must make a donation to a charity of the winner’s choice. To add a humiliation element to an otherwise wholesome fantasy football punishment, have the loser post the charitable donation with an explanation to all their social media accounts.
15. The Hunt
Paintball enthusiasts, this is the fantasy punishment for you to implement. The entire league does a paintball outing, where the final 5 minutes are reserved for chasing down and pummeling the league’s loser. The hunt is perfect for leagues that want a very harsh, but mercifully short-lived, punishment.
16. Not Black Friday
The day before Black Friday (aka Thanksgiving) is the one time each year that it’s socially acceptable to pitch a tent and camp overnight at your local Walmart. After all, someone needs to be first in line for all those amazing flat screen TV deals.
For this punishment, the last place finisher must go through the Black Friday ritual at a completely random time of year. League mates are encouraged to snap pictures of the league loser struggling to stay warm in the winter cold. Trust us, this is a punishment the loser will never forget.
17. Bad Haircut
The winner picks out the worst haircut they can find for the loser. Then, the loser must go to the barbershop and explain why they must get such a horrific haircut — because they suck at fantasy football. Of course, the loser covers the cost and leaves a generous tip. Leaguemates are encouraged to hang out and watch if the barbershop allows.
18. Bumper Sticker
The loser must purchase a custom made bumper sticker that reads something along the lines of “I suck at fantasy football.” The sticker must remain adorned on their car until a new loser is crowned the following season. Only then can the bumper sticker be removed, and the ritual commences once again for the new league loser.
A Friendly Word of Advice
Make sure everyone in the league agrees to abide by your league’s punishment rules before the season starts. This is especially important for some of the more devious torments. All tough talk aside, no one truly wants to go through with their punishment when the time comes.
Frequently Asked Questions
How is last place determined in fantasy football?
Last place can be determined several different ways, but let’s discuss two of the most common. The team with the worst record in the standings at the end of the season is the loser. If two teams have identical records, then the team with the fewest points scored during the season would be “crowned” the loser.
Or, the two worst teams can face off in the final week of the season, with the losing team earning the dubious honor of league loser. For more details, check out our guide on fantasy football scoring.
Sleeper fantasy football leagues allow for a “Toilet Bowl” during the playoffs. In a 12-team league with default settings, the top six teams compete for the championship in Weeks 15-17, while the bottom six teams compete in a three week tournament to avoid finishing in last place.
Can fantasy football end in a tie?
Generally, two teams cannot tie for last place in a league. If the above methods still result in a tie, then the league can defer to whoever lost the head-to-head matchup between the two last place teams during the regular season.
If those teams didn’t play – or tied – during the regular season, then the team with the highest scoring individual player in the final week of the season gets second to last place, with the other team getting crowned as the league loser. For example, if Team A’s highest-scoring player in Week 17 scored 16 fantasy points and Team B’s highest scoring player scored 14 fantasy points, then Team B would be the league loser. If both highest-scoring players tied, then move to the second-highest scoring players, and so on, until a champion is crowned.
Your league can also create its own customized rules for how to determine last place.
What is the best punishment in fantasy football?
There is no one-size-fits-all best fantasy football punishment. Hopefully, one of the 18 punishments listed in this article inspires you and your leaguemates. At the end of the day, the most important part of fantasy football is to have fun and strengthen bonds among friends. Choose a punishment that’s hilarious and memorable, then try your hardest to avoid having to suffer this dishonor.
Do fantasy football leagues need a last place punishment?
No, many fantasy football leagues operate without a last place punishment. The goal of the punishment is to discourage teams from tanking and to help leagues create lasting memories. Some of the punishments listed above are pretty harsh, but we included the charitable donation idea for leagues that don’t want a to be so extreme at the end of the fantasy season. There’s plenty of room for lighter punishments, too.
Customization Tools to Implement Your Punishments
The best way to develop a fantasy football punishment for your league is in the group chat. Sleeper offers a free platform to host your league and includes an immersive group chat feature, as well as highly customizable rules.
Join Sleeper, either by signing up on the website or downloading the app. The app makes league customization fun and easy, and gives you access to the league history feature, which allows you to go back to the archives to see the league’s champion for every season.
