It didn’t require a crystal ball to predict that DraftKings intended to get into the prediction markets game. Now, we know.
The gaming giant announced on Tuesday that it has acquired Commodity Futures Trading Commission-licensed derivatives exchange Railbird. The operator will launch a new DraftKings Predictions mobile app in the coming months that will allow customers to trade event contracts on finance, culture and entertainment markets.
Announcement does not mention sports
The release makes no mention of sports, but DraftKings said the platform, which will have the flexibility to connect to multiple exchanges, “may expand into additional categories over time.”
“We are excited about the additional opportunity that prediction markets could represent for our business,” said DraftKings CEO and Co-Founder Jason Robins. “We believe that Railbird’s team and platform — combined with DraftKings’ scale, trusted brand and proven expertise in mobile-first products — positions us to win in this incremental space.”
Front Office Sports first reported back in July that DraftKings was in talks to acquire Railbird, which gained its CFTC approval the prior month. Railbird CEO and Co-Founder Miles Saffran said on Tuesday that the acquisition is a transformational moment for his company.
Confirmation follows NFA filings, public chatter
Robins said on multiple earnings calls in recent months that DraftKings was watching the prediction markets space closely. As far back as summer 2024, the company’s leadership filed an application with the National Futures Association (NFA) for a business to be known as DraftKings Predict. That application vanished in March 2025, but a second filing appeared on the NFA site this summer.
Robins said on a call in August that he felt that being an early mover in a space like event contracts could be important, and confirmed the company was evaluating opportunities with its various stakeholders and partners.
DraftKings will now lean on Railbird’s team and proprietary technology as they build out their prediction market platform. The gaming operator said in a statement that Railbird’s infrastructure will enable it to offer “advantaged economics and long-term product differentiation.”
DraftKings joins FanDuel and others
That could be important, as the field is quickly becoming crowded.
DraftKings’ biggest rival, FanDuel, unveiled in August a partnership with derivatives marketplace CME Group to form a joint-venture Futures Commission Merchant (FCM) platform. Like DraftKings, FanDuel avoided the topic of sports in its announcement, but a Flutter legal representative confirmed that sports were already under consideration.
In September, PrizePicks became the first gaming operator to receive NFA approval to operate as a licensed FCM, an entity that can partner with a Designated Contract Merchant (DCM) like Kalshi to offer contracts on events like sports under CFTC oversight. Another fantasy-rooted operator, Underdog, is awaiting NFA approval but is already offering sports contracts in 16 states via a technology deal with Crypto.com. Fanatics also has a pending NFA application.
Will DraftKings and FanDuel risk licenses?
If DraftKings Predictions does begin offering sports contracts in the near future, it seems likely it would do so as a sportsbook substitute in states where typical online sports betting is not legal, something Robins addressed at the Global Gaming Expo in Las Vegas this month.
DraftKings’ decisive move comes as the legal and regulatory status of sports contracts continues to be hotly contested.
On Sept. 30, the CFTC issued its first direct public communication on sports contracts, only to state that it has not made up its mind on them. While the CFTC is hedging its bets, the Nevada Gaming Control Board (NGCB) followed gaming regulators in the likes of Ohio and Michigan in warning that offering sports contracts, even outside of state lines, could jeopardize sportsbooks’ in-state licenses.
Meanwhile, the issue also continues to rage in the courts in several states, with Kalshi and Crypto.com in the eye of the storm.
