Yahoo Inc. is kicking off the fantasy football season by adding new game features to its Web portal and offering mobile access for the first time.

This year's game gives fans new tools, including a new draft application with extensive player data and more personalization options. Fans will also have mobile access via Yahoo Mobile, including the ability to manage their teams, receive player news and injury information, and make roster changes.

"We are really focused on developing mobile-first applications to meet the needs of people on the go and make sure that our fantasy sports subscribers have access to real-time information and make changes to their roster when they're away from their PC," said Zealous Wiley, spokesman for Yahoo, Sunnyvale, CA.

"The mobile access point complements our PC offering," he said.

Other new additions to Yahoo Sports' fantasy football lineup include keeper features that allow fans to retain the best players and rising stars from last season, and custom team logos, meaning fans can use avatars, uploaded images or their own designs to represent their teams.

The new draft application has a drag-and-drop queue and audio alerts. Custom draft features provide advanced users more ways to personalize their live online drafts.

Yahoo Sports fantasy football is accessible at http://football.fantasysports.yahoo.com. While consumers can still use the fantasy football platform without subscribing, subscribers get enhanced features.

Once fans set up their teams online with Yahoo Sports, they can manage the team from their mobile device via http://m.yahoo.com/fantasy from their phone's Web browser. There are no additional fees to use the mobile service.

"Once you've set up your links online, you'll get real-time game updates, news and analysis via your handset, so it's a pretty robust offering," Mr. Wiley said. "You'll be able to make roster changes and get updates with all the stats."

In addition to the WAP site, there will be a widget that fans can download from the Yahoo Go application.

"It's available across hundreds of devices," Mr. Wiley said. "Yahoo Go is downloadable on 270 handsets and the WAP site is accessible on all Web-enabled phones."

The mobile features allow fans the ability to make roster updates, get the latest news and analysis, check injury reports, and real-time game-day updates with a StatTracker subscription.

Fantasy football allows users to build a roster of professional football players through drafts, trades and free-agent signings, and then watch as the team's success is measured by the on-field statistics of the players.

Yahoo Sports has offered fantasy football online for 11 seasons. Fans can register for this year's game through Oct. 17. The mobile component will launch Sept. 2.

"The mobile offering will become available before the start of the NFL season," Mr. Wiley said.

Yahoo Sports named Braylon Edwards, wide receiver for the Cleveland Browns, its Fantasy Football '08 Cover Athlete because of his breakout performance last year and his long-standing passion for fantasy football.

During the 2007 season Mr. Edwards set a Browns' franchise record with 1,289 receiving yards, completed 16 touchdowns -- third best in the league -- and played in his first Pro Bowl.

Mr. Edwards will also be a fantasy football coach, offering fans advice and tips throughout the season on how to create and maintain a winning fantasy team.

Fantasy football users can also get all the advice they need right before kick off from Yahoo Sports Fantasy Football Live, the pre-game fantasy football Web show entering its third season.

During the hour-long video program Yahoo Sports NFL and fantasy experts such as NFL columnist Mike Silver and fantasy guru Brandon Funston give fans information, advice and answers via phone, email and instant messenger.

Fantasy Football Live can be seen each Sunday of the NFL season at 12 noon ET.

Yahoo Sports continues to be a partner for advertisers aiming to reach the more than 4 million users that play Yahoo Sports fantasy football each season.

This year Yahoo Sports worked with partners such as Toyota, Chex Mix and Coca-Cola to deliver many of the new game features, including the new draft application and enhanced smack talk.

"There will also be advertising such as banner ads on the mobile service," Mr. Wiley said.

The advertisers who have signed on to advertise via the mobile platform have not yet been announced.

"We're going to market the mobile site via our PC and mobile channels, the Yahoo Sports site and via our various mobile offerings, which get quite a few eyeballs," Mr. Wiley said.

"The mobile platform extends our reach and provides our fantasy users with another vehicle to stay in contact with the sport that is important to them, which is football," he said.