You could have predicted this.
Major League Baseball sent a letter to acting chairman Caroline D. Pham of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) Friday on its stance on sports event contracts, such as the ones offered by the likes of Kalshi and Polymarket.
The CFTC is an independent federal regulatory agency tasked with overseeing the U.S. derivatives markets.
The letter reiterated that "protecting the integrity of competition is, and always has been, MLB’s top priority" regarding their stance on sports betting with legal sportsbooks across the country.
"MLB has supported legal sports betting at the state level based on robust regulation and relationships in which sports leagues are viewed as partners and integrity of competition is considered paramount. If the CFTC decides to permit sports event contracts, this same integrity framework should be applied," said MLB executive vice president of legal and operations Bryan Seeley.
"MLB looks forward to continuing to engage with the CFTC, exchanges, brokers, and other interested parties on these issues."
Joining the chorus
MLB is one of a few entities that have shared their thoughts and stances on the predictive market issue over the last 17 days alone.
The Nevada Gaming Control Board (NGCB) issued a cease-and-desist order to Kalshi last week to end their operations in the Silver State and exit the market this Friday. The NGCB cited violations of state gaming laws and for engaging in unlawful gaming activity such as “event-based contracts” on sporting events and election outcomes, all of which are unlawful in the state unless approved as a licensed gaming operator by the Nevada Gaming Commission.
In late February, Congresswoman Dina Titus (D), who has represented Nevada's First District since 2013, sent a letter to the CFTC due to concerns about legalizing prediction markets on sports contracts, arguing it could undermine state-regulated sports betting, consumer protections, and tax revenues adding that it is a backdoor way to allow sports wagering in all 50 states.
The CFTC will be holding a public roundtable later this month to discuss regulating prediction markets, including sports-related contracts. The Titus letter was in response to a public input deadline by the CFTC.
