- NFL says prediction markets are now included in its league-wide betting policy
- League said those platforms “mimic sports betting”
- NCAA says it’s “deeply concerned” about rise of prediction markets
With the 2025 football season slated to kick-off in earnest this weekend, the NCAA and the NFL are firing warning shots about prediction markets.
The NFL announced Monday that all league personnel, including players, are prohibited from using platforms such as Kalshi and Polymarket to invest in sports derivatives contracts. In 2024,the league submitted comments to the Commodities Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) – the federal regulator of event contract sites — expressing concern that operators in that space aren’t regulated in fashion comparable to sportsbook companies.
These platforms mimic sports betting, they are covered as prohibited under our policy,” said Sabrina Perel, NFL vice president and chief compliance officer, at a Monday press event.
The NFL, which reported no betting-related incidents last year, is the most wagered on league in the US. Beyond the anti-prediction market stance, no new sports wagering policies were unveiled for the 2025 season, but Perel added the league brought in former players to educate current athletes in live, mandatory sports wagering trading sessions.
Tension Mounting Between NFL, Prediction Markets
While some betting and prediction market industry observers said there wasn’t much in the way of surprises to come out of the NFL’s Monday press conference, the timing of the event is pertinent and not just because the league’s first regular season game is coming up on Thursday, Sept. 4.
The league making it clear players and staff are barred from engaging with sports derivatives arrived a week after Kalshi filed with the CFTC to offer football event contracts that are essentially bets on spreads and totals as well as player propositions. That’s new territory for Kalshi, which has to this point, offered yes/no sports contracts that are comparable to money line bets.
David Highhill, NFL vice president of sports betting, said the league is concerned about wagers where players have full control over the outcomes as well as wagering on things like injuries and calls by referees.
“We’re concerned that if these markets aren’t properly regulated, they could be susceptible to manipulation or price distortion,” he said at the press conference.
The media event took place nearly a week after Robinhood Markets said it will offer event contracts on all regular season NFL games and all Power 4 and independent college football tilts this year. Robinhood, which has a partnership with Kalshi, is extending its competition with traditional sportsbook operators, potentially giving the NFL and the NCAA another scenario to monitor in the process.
NCAA Not a Prediction Markets Fan, Either
Robinhood’s announcement sparked response from the NCAA, which said it’s “deeply concerned” about the lack of regulatory oversight of prediction markets relative to the protocols in place to which traditional sportsbook operators are subjected to.
“We will continue to analyze developments of this market and work with industry leaders to help ensure guardrails and regulations to protect NCAA competition, student-athletes, coaches and officials,” said Tim Buckley, a senior vice president for the NCAA, in an Aug. 22 statement.
Buckley added that companies that fall outside of state regulatory oversight — the regulators gaming companies answer to — “pose a threat to competition integrity and student-athlete safety.”
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