Tribes warn CFTC push on sports prediction markets threatens gaming compacts

A proposal by the U.S. derivatives regulator to expand prediction markets tied to sports outcomes is drawing sharp opposition from tribal leaders and some lawmakers, who warn it could undermine long-standing gaming compacts and redirect billions in revenue.

Michael Selig, chairman of the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), has signaled support for allowing federally regulated platforms to list contracts linked to sports results, describing such products as financial instruments rather than wagers. He provided congressional testimony on Wednesday, triggering concern from tribes.

During the House Agriculture Committee hearing, Selig said prediction markets could "play a role in price discovery,” underscoring the agency’s view that sports-related contracts fall under the Commodity Exchange Act as swaps, not gambling regulated by states or tribes.

However, tribal officials argue that the distinction threatens decades of negotiated exclusivity under the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act, which underpins tribal-state compacts across the United States.

"If the federal government decides these are commodities instead of bets, it wipes out the foundation of tribal exclusivity,” said David Bean, chairman of the Indian Gaming Association. "That’s not modernization — that’s erasure.”

Bean warned that federally approved prediction markets could erode tribal revenues and jobs, adding: "Prediction markets threaten these rural jobs and the progress that we’ve achieved by violating our laws, federal laws, and the laws of our state government partners.”

https://www.yogonet.com/international/news/2026/04/20/118648-tribes-warn-cftc-push-on-sports-prediction-markets-threatens-gaming-compacts