NFL Asks Supreme Court to Review Federal Sports Betting Oversight

The NFL urged the U.S. Supreme Court on Oct. 8 to review whether states or the Commodity Futures Trading Commission regulate sports prediction contracts, a dispute that could shape federal oversight of the market.

The league backed New Jersey’s challenge to KalshiEX LLC’s claim that federal derivatives law overrides state sports-betting rules. New Jersey filed its petition Sept. 2, and the NFL submitted an amicus brief supporting the state’s position Oct. 8.

The NFL argued that sports event contracts are wagers, not financial swaps designed for hedging or price discovery. It also said prediction-market operators lack safeguards used by state-regulated sportsbooks, including limits on bets vulnerable to manipulation and minimum gambling ages of 21.

The league said 18-year-olds can place sports wagers through federally regulated markets even when state law bars them from licensed sportsbooks. It also pointed to the CFTC’s 543 employees overseeing the country’s derivatives markets and event contracts.

The case reflects a split among the Third, Sixth and Ninth circuits over whether sports contracts qualify as swaps and whether federal law preempts state gambling regulation. The Supreme Court has not decided whether to hear the case.