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Sportsfanlive (http://www.sportsfanlive.com)

common sense media says

A MySpace for sports fans with a betting twist.

parents & educators say
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What parents need to know

Parents need to know that teen sports fans will love this slick, well-organized college and pro sports fan site patterned after MySpace. Kids are supposed to be at least 13 to join, and there appears to be a lot of 18+ adult males in the membership. Some features are clearly intended for adults, like the "FanFinder," which is a way to find the sports bar nearest you. The profile page gives the option to enter your real name, hometown, photo, and other personal information, which raises safety questions for teens on this mixed teen/adult forum. But there's a safer option offered to make your real name known only to friends, or to use the site without using your name. Also, individual members' profiles and the comments on them aren't monitored, raising the chance of encountering rough language and inappropriate sexual references.

Educational value: Not applicable.
Positive messages: While gambling is explicitly prohibited, everyone who signs up starts with 1,000,000 FanBux to challenge other site members with a "gentlemen's bet" on sports topics using FanBux.
Violence: Not applicable.
Sex: No overt sexual content on main site, but individual members' profiles and comments may contain inappropriate sexual references.
Language: There's a warning in the terms against posting inappropriate content, but individual members' profiles and comments are not monitored.
Consumerism: Banner ads advertise TV brands, the NFL, sports news, and more.
Drinking, drugs, & smoking: The Fan Finder feature locates the sports bar nearest to your zip code where you can see the game you're interested in.
Our ratings and reviews are informed by child development guidelines. Learn more.

More on Sportsfanlive

What to talk about

Talk to your kids
Families can talk about how to handle yourself in a mixed teen/adult group on the Internet -- just because you're talking about something as straightforward as sports doesn't mean everyone's motives are good. Also, what's the line between fun "gentlemen's bets" on sports with fake money and gambling with real cash?

Is it any good?

Is it any good?
 
Some elements make this site unique and more valuable to sports fans than a general social networking site. It searches thousands of news and sports sources daily to give fans news on each member's chosen favorite teams and players. Interesting poll questions about the sports news of the day -- everything from players' behavior off the field to coaches' strategy -- help place sports into a larger context for teens.

Overall, Sportsfanlive.com is a smart, entertaining way for sports fans to keep up with loads of information on their favorite leagues, teams, and players, and to interact with other fans. But parents should be ready to throw the penalty flag if teens don't approach the social networking safety and betting aspects of the site with caution.

This review was written by Dana Villamagna
 
 

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About our rating system
ON: Content is appropriate for kids this age.
PAUSE: Know your child, some content may not be right for some kids
OFF: Not age appropriate for kids this age
Our child development rating guidelines