The NBA announced on Monday that it has named Kalshi and Polymarket as its preferred prediction market exchanges, making the league the latest major sports organization to enter the prediction markets space [1]. The partnership includes significant integrity protections for NBA markets, such as limitations on which types of event contracts can be featured and information-sharing requirements regarding suspicious trades [1]. Scott Kaufman-Ross, NBA head of media distribution and partnerships, stated that "Protecting the integrity of the game is our top priority" and characterized the partnerships as "an important step in establishing a framework that creates new opportunities to engage our fans" [1].
As part of the announcement, the NBA also signed a memorandum of understanding with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), the federal agency asserting jurisdiction over prediction markets, to maintain integrity through information exchanges [1]. The NBA joins other major sports leagues in embracing prediction markets: the NHL announced partnerships with both Kalshi and Polymarket in October 2025, and the MLB announced a relationship with Polymarket in March [1]. As preferred exchanges, Kalshi and Polymarket receive rights to use NBA intellectual property along with marketing and licensing rights [1].
The move positions the NBA amid an ongoing regulatory dispute between states and the federal government over prediction market oversight [1]. States argue that event contracts amount to sports betting and should be regulated at the state level, while platforms and the CFTC contend that event contracts are swaps—a type of derivative—and thus fall under federal regulation [1]. Courts across the country have delivered conflicting rulings on the issue, with many expecting the Supreme Court will be needed to resolve the dispute [1]. The NBA's partnership announcement now leaves the NFL as the outlier among major American sports leagues regarding prediction markets [1].
CONCLUSION
The NBA's official partnerships with Kalshi and Polymarket represent a significant endorsement of prediction markets as a fan engagement tool, backed by federal coordination through a CFTC memorandum of understanding. The move underscores the growing mainstream acceptance of prediction markets in sports while highlighting the ongoing regulatory uncertainty that will likely require Supreme Court intervention to resolve state versus federal jurisdiction disputes.