NHL Collaborates with Feds to Set Prediction Market Guidelines

The NHL is actively collaborating with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) to create guidelines for event contracts trading involving sports. This initiative comes after the league reached deals with prediction market firms Kalshi and Polymarket in October. The collaboration aims to address integrity concerns that have arisen since these markets began offering trades on sports a year ago.

NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman emphasized the importance of these discussions, stating that the league is working with federal regulators to ensure game integrity and protect the sport's integrity. “We’ll see what those discussions yield, but I think it’s really just to kind of work together to make sure we’re all comfortable,” Bettman told the Associated Press. “There’s a comfort level that the games will remain secure and the integrity will be protected.”

The CFTC has been assertive in its regulatory role, filing lawsuits against several states, including Arizona, Connecticut, and Illinois, to assert its sole regulatory power over the industry. The NHL, being one of the first leagues to embrace prediction markets, sees this partnership as a way to maintain control over the platforms' offerings. “You have to acknowledge the things that are going on around you,” Bettman said. “And first of all, if there was going to be prediction contracts, we wanted them based on your back for the benefit of our fans. “But secondly, and most importantly, we have the ability to knock out any prediction contracts we don’t think are appropriate, which gives us more control.