NHL 'Comfortable' With Prediction Market Deals, In Talks With Federal Regulators About Guidelines

Apr 28th, 2026 11:44 AM EDT

Sep 28, 2020; Edmonton, Alberta, CAN; A view of the ice and the Stanley Cup Final logo and the player sticks and gloves after the Tampa Bay Lightning defeat the Dallas Stars in game six of the 2020 Stanley Cup Final at Rogers Place. Mandatory Credit: Perry Nelson-USA TODAY Sports

The NHL Tuesday said it - along with other major pro sports leagues - remains in talks with federal regulators about guidelines that would govern prediction market trades. The league entered into partnerships with Kalshi and Polymarket ahead of this past season.

"We have also initiated discussions with the CFTC (Commodities Futures Trading Corporation). Having said that, and I won't speak for the other leagues, we are very comfortable with the safeguards to be built into our contracts with respect to our ability to control for the security," Commissioner Gary Bettman said while speaking to a group from the Associated Press Sports Editors at the league's headquarters.

Those talks remain in the nascent stages. "We'll see what those discussions yield, but I think it's really just to kind of work together to make sure we're all comfortable. There's a comfort level that the games will remain secure and the integrity will be protected," Bettman said.

Bettman, NHL Commissioner since 1996, would not share his level of confidence in the CFTC as an enforcement body. The Commission has been understaffed of late and remains the lone oversight body for millions of trades being executed daily across markets ranging from weather, to sports, to cultural events, to politics.

"It's hard for me to answer that question. I have to assume they'll be a fine enforcement body, but we're early on in our approach to them," Bettman said. "I don't know if this is in their mainstream or not. Probably going to be a little learning by everybody involved in those discussions."

The NHL does not not rule out the possibility of a single "memorandum of understanding" under which all the major pro leagues could operate. "We're having active discussions with the CFTC the same as the other leagues, right? So that's kind of the current state of play for us. The four of us, we talk all the time," added NHL EVP Jon Weinstein.

Bettman Pleased With Prediction Market Deals - Thus Far

The NHL became the first of the four major pro sports leagues in the United States to join forces with prediction markets. Those platforms, like Kalshi, Polymarket (U.S.), Robinhood, and others, operate at Designated Contract Markets under federal CFTC guidance. Unlike sports books such as FanDuel and DraftKings, these entities are not subject to state-by-state oversight or taxation.

A year ago at these meetings, Bettman was the only Commissioner who voiced an openness toward prediction markets.

"You have to acknowledge the things that are going on around you. And first of all, if there was going to be prediction contracts, we wanted them based on your back for the benefit of our fans. But secondly, and most importantly, we have the ability to knock out any prediction contracts we don't think are appropriate, which gives us more control," Bettman said Tuesday. "And we are monitoring that market in real-time. So that in the event an contract is the one that we don't think is appropriate, we can envision the reasons we might not think it was appropriate. We can make them take it out."

Has that happened yet?

"Hasn't happened. It's really the prop betting where this comes up, whether it's sports betting or the prediction market. And our game isn't as susceptible as the other games. So in terms of being comfortable, in terms of the integrity of the game and our people, I have complete confidence in our players and our office personnel. But more than that, the game doesn't lend itself to some of the issues."

NHL 'Comfortable' With Prediction Market Deals, In Talks With Federal Regulators About Guidelines

Bettman Pleased With Prediction Market Deals - Thus Far

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