The NBA’s public comment to the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) regarding prediction markets paints a stark contrast to other pro leagues.
The CFTC published a notice in March inviting the public, corporations, and leagues to comment on whether to amend or issue new regulations governing event contracts.
The agency set an April 30 deadline for public comment submissions, with some of the largest stakeholders in gaming and sports sending letters to the CFTC on prediction markets. In total, the CFTC received over 1,500 public comments regarding the platforms.
While some leagues are already in partnerships with prediction markets operators, the NBA sent a letter to the CFTC doubling down on its concerns regarding event contracts.
“There is no higher priority for the NBA than protecting the integrity of our games and preserving public confidence in our league and in our sport,” said Dan Spillane, NBA Executive Vice President and Assistant General Counsel, League Governance & Policy. “While this letter takes no position on the legal question of whether sports prediction markets constitute gambling under federal or state law, we believe that such markets raise integrity concerns that are similar to those associated with sports betting”.
How the NBA wants CFTC to handle regulation
As a result of those integrity concerns, the NBA wants prediction markets that offer sports event contracts to be subject to “robust and comprehensive regulations” that are designed to protect the integrity of competition. The NBA provided the CFTC with recommendations to integrate these recommendations into its rulemaking process:
- Designated contract markets (DCMs) to prevent athletes, officials and team personnel from sports trading through a Know Your Customer (KYC) system
- Cooperate with trading-related investigations initiated by governing bodies in sports
- Report all prohibited and suspicious NBA trading and to share data upon request
- Required use of official league data and implement minimum age limits of 21 years of age, mirroring sports betting rules in the U.S.
- Limit markets that are “more susceptible to manipulation and/or misuse of confidential information”
Markets certified by who exactly?
The NBA also wants the CFTC to consider reevaluating its self-certification process. The process allows operators like Kalshi and Polymarket to create and launch NBA-specific markets on their platforms.
“In addition to the specific constraints outlined above, as DCMs continue to generate new and more exotic sports markets—including products that mimic ‘micro’ bets or traditional ‘parlay’ bets—we further urge the Commission to adjust the self-certification process so that leagues are given an opportunity to weigh in on new markets before they are permitted to launch,” continued Spillane.
The request comes after the CFTC recommended collaboration between DCMs and leagues. The NBA’s integrity concerns surrounding sports event contract trading are not new sentiment for the league, as it sent a letter to the CFTC almost exactly a year ago.
Last May, former CFTC Acting Chair Caroline D. Pham received a letter from the NBA about the proliferation of sports event contracts amid an unclear regulatory framework in 2025. The league voiced concerns about player props and full-season trading events.
Since then, the CFTC moved firmly in the direction of prediction market operators and their sports event contracts, with the agency backing certain prediction markets and suing states who restrict them in court.
MLB sends public comment after Polymarket deal
The NBA’s letter to the CFTC varied from other sports leagues, particularly those that already solidified a footprint in the prediction market space through partnerships.
MLB submitted public comment to the CFTC, asking DCMs to consider “establishing information-sharing and data arrangements with the relevant sports integrity monitoring organization.” The league also wants DCMs to use official MLB data.
MLB did not have an extensive list of recommendations for the CFTC. The league entered the prediction market space in March through deals with the CFTC and Polymarket.
The CFTC and MLB reached a memorandum of understanding concerning information-sharing concerns. Meanwhile, Polymarket became the league’s exclusive prediction market partner through a multiyear deal. The pact provides Polymarket with access to MLB trademarks and the sides are also working together to deliver digital promotions.
NHLPA gets involved as well
A group of players’ associations for professional sports leagues also sent comment to the CFTC, requesting athlete protection protocols and the right to work with the regulator and operators when conducting investigations and establishing data-sharing agreements.
One of the players’ associations is the NHLPA, the union for a pro hockey league that has ties to prediction markets. Last year, the NHL secured multiyear deals with both Polymarket and Kalshi. The pacts provide the two brands with access to official NHL data. The NHL was the first U.S. pro sports league to officially enter the prediction market space.
The ATP and the PGA TOUR also sent letters to the CFTC.
In addition to the sports leagues, DraftKings, Fanatics and FanDuel also submitted public comments to the CFTC. All three gaming brands are operating a prediction market product in some capacity. Fanatics was the first operator to debut a standalone product.
