LI Man Turns Fantasy Football Passion Into Over $40K For Charity

COPIAGUE, NY—Fantasy football leagues aren't just fun and games for one Long Islander. Sal Leto, of Copiague, has hosted a podcast called Fantasy Football Funhouse for years, but five years ago he had a brand new idea with a lot more meaning: a charity "podathon."

The podcast-style telethon happens every July, when the fantasy football league season kicks off. Leto has grown the event from a small experiment to a major endeavor that in 2020 alone raised over $40,000 for charity.

The SFB Podathon features a rotating cast of fantasy football analysts, sports commenters, NFL players and more, and Leto and his two podcast co-hosts, Kevin Cutillo and Steve Marcuz, stream for a full 24 hours across multiple platforms, and encourage viewers to donate. NBA plater Shane Battier has been a guest, along with experts like ESPN's Matthew Berry.

The Podathon is part of a larger charitable fantasy football league called Fantasy Cares, founded by Scott Fish, whose annual Scott Fish Bowl teams industry experts against fans.

Every Christmas, Leto and the team divide the money they raised among different parts of the country—the Podathon has a national, and even international, audience—and go shopping for Toys for Tots.

"That's my favorite part of the holidays now," Leto tells Patch.

"I take my kids, my kids bring their friends, we head to Target, we grab families walking around shopping and get them involved. Seeing what my kids say, what they learn from it...it's amazing."

Leto hopes the Podathon will continue to grow. He'd love to get on a bigger platform, like satellite radio, he said, where the full 24 hours can be streamed in one place.

In 2022, the event is going to last even longer, 36 hours, to accommodate more guests who want to be on the live show. Leto may also expand into having non-sports celebrity guests, who play fantasy football, just like the fans.

Talking for 24 hours straight isn't too hard, he says—"I love to talk" but staying up for a day straight is never easy.

"It takes a few days to recover."

But the efforts are worth it, Leto says, when he makes that annual shopping trip with friends and family.

"At the end of the day, you're taking something you already love, something you're already having fun with it, and you're doing something more with it. You can win some money, sure, but giving back....that's what it's all about for me."