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Nevada’s top gaming regulator says the Commodity Futures Trading Commission’s latest move on prediction markets does not change the core issue: sports-event contracts still look like sports betting.
Speaking during an Indian Gaming Association webinar, Nevada Gaming Control Board Chairman Mike Dreitzer said he was not surprised the CFTC advanced rulemaking that would further define how event contracts are treated under federal law. For readers in New York and other legal sportsbook states, the dispute matters because it centers on whether sports-linked prediction products can operate outside the same state gambling rules that govern traditional betting.
CFTC proposals would reshape how event contracts are treated
According to the source report, the CFTC advanced two proposals as part of a broader regulatory overhaul of prediction markets. One proposal would expand the definition of “swap” to include event contracts tied to sports, politics, weather, and cultural events. An interim final rule would also confirm the agency’s position that traditional gambling products, including sportsbook wagers and casino-style games, are excluded from the swap definition.
Dreitzer said the distinction being drawn is not persuasive. He argued that a $10 wager on the New York Giants and a $10 sports-event contract are, in practice, the same thing. “I think what they’ve created is an untenable distinction without a difference,” he said.
He also pushed back on claims that prediction markets are meaningfully different because they are peer-to-peer or allow users to trade in and out of positions. Dreitzer said those features do not separate the products from sports betting, noting that online sportsbooks have long offered cash-out options.
Kalshi rehearing request keeps legal fight alive
The report also noted that Kalshi has filed for rehearing in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit after losing a case against regulators in Ohio and Tennessee. The Sixth Circuit unanimously ruled against Kalshi and found prediction markets are not exempt from state gambling regulations, including taxes.
That does not create a direct New York action here, but it is part of the broader legal and regulatory fight over who controls sports-related prediction products: federal commodities regulators or state gambling agencies.
What players should watch next
The biggest open questions are whether the CFTC finalizes its proposed rules and whether Kalshi wins any further traction in court. For sportsbook users, the underlying issue is straightforward: regulators are still debating whether these products should be treated as something new or simply as another form of sports betting.
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Source: As reported by cdcgaming.com.
