FanSided

FanSided is a fandom-focused sports, lifestyle and entertainment network of more than 300 websites. It was co-founded and launched in 2009 by brothers Zach Best and Adam Best. FanSided is owned by Minute Media and is headquartered in Chicago, Illinois.
About.
The FanSided network consists of more than 300 websites, and also has a dedicated mobile app and daily newsletters. As of June 2016, FanSided was the fastest-growing among the top 15 digital sports networks.
History.
The idea of FanSided was born in 2007 when brothers Adam and Zach Best co-founded a Kansas City Chiefs blog called "Arrowhead Addict". The FanSided network was officially launched in 2009.
Over time, the site expanded to include other professional sports, as well as more topics, including general news, entertainment, lifestyle and fandoms like "Game of Thrones", "The Walking Dead", and "Star Wars".
Matt Blake joined the company as a partner and chief product officer in 2011. Both Matt Blake and Zach Best serve as co-CEOs of FanSided.
FanSided was acquired by Time Inc. on May 26, 2015. Financial details of the agreement were not disclosed. Under Time Inc.’s ownership, founders Adam and Zach Best continued to oversee FanSided as a division of the Sports Illustrated Group.
On March 2, 2017, Adam Best announced his departure from the company.
On January 31, 2018, Time Inc. was acquired by Meredith Corporation, which assumed ownership of all of Time Inc.’s media brands, including FanSided.
In January of 2020, FanSided was sold to Minute Media from Meredith Corporation. 
Partnerships.
In August 2012, FanSided partnered with "Sports Illustrated". The partnership offered "Sports Illustrated" an opportunity to expand its local sports coverage and reach new customers via FanSided's digital network. As part of the partnership, "Sports Illustrated"'s website featured links to content on FanSided websites. Time Inc. also sold ads on the FanSided websites with revenue shared between the two entities.
Projects.
FanSided Fan of the Year.
On November 6, 2015, in conjunction with "Sports Illustrated", FanSided announced the "FanSided Fan of the Year" contest. The annual contest is aimed at recognizing the most dedicated sports fans. The five finalists are interviewed and profiled on FanSided.com and receive a one-year subscription to "Sports Illustrated". The grand prize winner is featured in "Sports Illustrated".
FanSided 250.
On November 1, 2016, FanSided announced "Fandom 250", a subjective ranking of the best 250 fandoms in the world. The yearly ranking is assembled by a panel of experts who evaluate more than 500 fandoms across multiple categories, including sports, technology, entertainment, lifestyle and more. The fandoms are evaluated based on their size, longevity, economic and media impact, as well as the passion of its fans. For its fourth year, FanSided renamed the project the FanSided 250.
FanSiders of the Year.
On February 7, 2020, FanSided announced its first annual "FanSider of the Year Awards", recognizing the best of the best at FanSided. The inaugural FanSiders of the Year for 2019 included:<br>NFL Expert (Editor) of the Year Brad Weiss .<br>NCAA Experts (Editors) of the Year Jacob Lane. and Presley Meyer<br>NFL Contributor (Writer) of the Year Chris Wilson.<br>NCAA Contributor (Writer) of the Year Zach Bigalke.
Traffic.
According to the June 2016 comScore report, the FanSided network averaged more than 10 million unique visitors per month. 
Controversies.
Fictional columnist Burt Gertson.
On September 29, 2016, Burt Gertson, who was listed as one of FanSided's writers, got into a Twitter argument with former adult film actress Mia Khalifa, who at the time was a regular sports columnist at FanSided. It soon turned out that Gertson was not a real person despite initial claims by FanSided former Editor-in-Chief Jim Cavan. Shortly after, FanSided admitted in a series of tweets that Gertson was not real and his column was meant to be fictional satire. FanSided issued a statement on October 1, 2016 announcing that it had fired Cavan.