Published on: April 29, 2026, 10:10h.
Updated on: April 29, 2026, 10:12h.
- Reports indicate NBA is negotiating with the CFTC regarding prediction markets
- NBA has previously raised concerns about the integrity of prediction markets
- MLB established a partnership with Polymarket in March
As more professional sports leagues form alliances with prediction markets, NBA Commissioner Adam Silver revealed discussions with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) regarding a memorandum of understanding.
NBA and Its Approach Towards Prediction Markets
According to initial reports from Bookies.com, and earlier from Front Office Sports, the NBA could be on the verge of collaborating with prediction market operators such as Kalshi, Polymarket, and Fanatics Markets.
By doing so, the NBA would join other major sports leagues, such as the NHL, which established multi-year agreements with Kalshi and Polymarket last October, and MLB, which designated Polymarket as its official prediction market exchange in March.
MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred formalized a memorandum of understanding with CFTC Chairman Michael Selig just a year after the league requested the CFTC to implement robust integrity measures in the evolving landscape of prediction markets.
Details of the MLB-Polymarket Agreement
A cornerstone of the MLB and Polymarket partnership is the development of a comprehensive integrity framework aimed at addressing markets that could pose an integrity risk to MLB. This encompasses aspects such as individual pitches, managerial decisions, and umpire performance, among others.
It was only last May that Alexandra Roth, Vice President and Assistant General Counsel for the NBA, voiced concerns over the surge of prediction markets in a letter to CFTC Acting Chairman Caroline Pham.
The swift growth of sports prediction markets has occurred without the establishment of a solid, sports-specific regulatory framework designed to protect the integrity of the games being played,” she stated then. “Without tailored oversight and regulations for sports wagering, the risks to integrity posed by prediction markets are amplified and more challenging to manage than those associated with regulated sports gambling.
Concerns Over Sports-Betting Scandals
“Should the CFTC eventually choose to allow the continued offering of sports event contracts, we advocate for addressing this gap by adopting a comprehensive regulatory and oversight framework akin to those governing state sports betting markets, and imposing practical restrictions on the ongoing expansion of these markets through self-certification into increasingly exotic and narrow event propositions.”
The UFC and MLS are also collaborating with prediction market firms.
The NBA has faced multiple betting scandals in recent years, especially those involving Jontay Porter and the ongoing federal investigation into Terry Rozier.
Damon Jones Pleads Guilty
On the previous day, in a Brooklyn court, former NBA player Damon Jones admitted guilt to two counts of conspiracy to commit wire fraud linked to two separate cases from October 2025 involving illegal sports betting and a rigged poker game scheme. Jones disclosed to the court that the objective of the betting conspiracy, stretching from December 2022 to March 2024, was to leverage insider knowledge from his former player and coaching roles to profit from sports betting.
Jones faces a potential prison term of 21-27 months for the betting case and 63-78 months for the poker case. His sentencing is set for January 6.