So, I want to run a tournament for a game I play with a cash prize, but I want to make sure I'm not going to get trolled into oblivion for just trying to do something nice. There is no fee or buy-in to enter, and I will not personally be competing. I am based in California, the game company is based in Canada, and we're trying to make it available to players worldwide (including EU and Australian players).
What I need to know:
1. Is the basic idea of distributing money to the winner of a skill-based contest (with no entree fee) legal?
2. Can I leave this open to players worldwide, or are there problems I'll run into trying to do that?
3. What is the best way to address donations? Though there's a respectable ($1000) initial prize pool, I'd like to leave it open for the community to make it even bigger.
4. Will it cause any legal headaches to have sponsors? If it gains enough momentum, I'd like to offer a small number of companies the opportunity to have their name attached in exchange for some lower-tier prizes.
TL;DR: I want to do something nice, but I have no intention of being legally trolled over this. How can I make this happen?
What I need to know:
1. Is the basic idea of distributing money to the winner of a skill-based contest (with no entree fee) legal?
2. Can I leave this open to players worldwide, or are there problems I'll run into trying to do that?
3. What is the best way to address donations? Though there's a respectable ($1000) initial prize pool, I'd like to leave it open for the community to make it even bigger.
4. Will it cause any legal headaches to have sponsors? If it gains enough momentum, I'd like to offer a small number of companies the opportunity to have their name attached in exchange for some lower-tier prizes.
TL;DR: I want to do something nice, but I have no intention of being legally trolled over this. How can I make this happen?