Amid its postseason surge, professional hockey’s largest league has agreed to coordinate betting oversight on popular prediction markets with the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission, entering into a new memorandum of understanding similar to one recently struck with Major League Baseball.
The National Hockey League, which last year formally partnered with Kalshi and Polymarket as the league’s official prediction market partners, has agreed to share information with the regulator on event contracts related to its games, according to a statement released by the agency on Thursday. The CFTC has sought similar agreements with all professional sports leagues, its president Mike Selig said at an event last week.
“This agreement is another step toward safeguarding the integrity of sports and protecting prediction market participants from insider trading, fraud and other abuses,” he said of the NHL deal in a statement.
Selig has made it his business to promote the industry and defend his agency’s role as its sole regulator.
Betting in the predictions market has seen explosive growth in recent years, and its popularity has sparked concerns about abuse and cheating. At a Senate Commerce Committee hearing this week, lawmakers criticized the dark side of the industry. Bad actors — including among the athletes themselves — threaten to “sow seeds of doubt in the minds of fans,” committee chairman Ted Cruz said.
“Integrity has always been and remains paramount to the NHL and fundamental to the trust our fans and partners place in our game,” NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman said in a statement released by the CFTC. “Our agreement with the CFTC enhances the comprehensive integrity monitoring systems already in place and strengthens our ability to identify, prevent and address potential risks.”
Under the new MOU, the league and the regulator “will endeavor to share information, upon request, regarding the integrity of professional hockey and related event contract markets or other matters deemed appropriate.”
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