Recent submissions to the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) reveal that DraftKings has self-certified multi-leg event contracts and nine football contracts for its prediction market platform.
In a regulatory filing last Friday, Railbird Exchange, acquired by DraftKings last October, announced its self-certification to offer “combos”—which are known in the prediction market realm as multi-part wagers or parlays. Railbird operates as DKeX, DraftKings’ in-house prediction market exchange that kicked off in late June.
“The Contracts settle based on the collective outcome of two or more individual contracts listed on DKeX, adhering to the guidelines outlined in Chapter 13 of the DKeX Rulebook,” the regulatory filing states. “These Contracts are categorized as swaps and will be certified by August 11, 2026, at which point they will be available for trading on the Exchange.”
Through the self-certification process, a prediction market operator notifies the CFTC of its plans to introduce specific event contracts along with their availability date. If the commission doesn’t intervene or require additional information, the contracts will launch as scheduled.
Overview of the Football Event Contracts
Just in time for the 2026 football season, Railbird’s filing on August 10 revealed a series of nine football event contracts.
This array of filings includes various football-related derivatives similar to the offerings available on the DraftKings sportsbook. These contracts are akin to the prediction market’s versions of sides and totals, as well as self-certified player proposition wagers and markets related to play awards, such as MVP.
“The Contracts determine whether a particular football player or coach secures a designated season-long award, officially acknowledged by the awarding body, subject to the contract terms and market specifics as outlined in Chapter 13 of the DKeX Rulebook,” states the filing. “These Contracts are classified as swaps.”
Provided the CFTC does not intervene, DKeX could begin offering these event contracts as early as tomorrow—an opportune moment given that the start of the 2026 NFL season is just around the corner.
DraftKings Strengthening Its Integrated Model
Combos are not a new phenomenon on DraftKings Predictions. Since May, the gaming firm has partnered with Crypto.com to provide multi-leg bets, yet the self-certification filings from Railbird illustrate DraftKings’ ambition to enhance its role as a vertically integrated prediction market operator.
This model allows companies greater economic control over the fate of their event contracts and is gaining popularity within the industry.
Nonetheless, many other operators are still pursuing partnerships. For instance, Crypto.com supplies infrastructure and trade routing services to companies like Fanatics and FanDuel, and discussions are ongoing with Robinhood Markets regarding a potential prediction market collaboration.