- The AGA has launched a marketing campaign towards prediction markets providing sports activities contracts
- The AGA claims such platforms threaten sports activities integrity and lack client protections
The American Gaming Affiliation (AGA) has deployed commercials in choose US markets campaigning towards the proliferation of prediction markets that provide sports activities contracts.
{A photograph} exhibits a pc displaying Kalshi odds for the end result of the 2024 US presidential election on Oct. 13, 2024. The American Gaming Affiliation is operating a marketing campaign towards prediction markets providing sports activities occasion contracts. (Picture: Getty)
The AGA, the lobbying group representing the pursuits of the industrial and tribal gaming industries in Washington, DC, and in state capitals throughout the nation, lately purchased promoting time on social media and YouTube to marketing campaign towards sports activities occasion contracts on prediction market platforms. Prediction markets have quickly emerged within the US, prompting sportsbook leaders DraftKings and FanDuel to affix Kalshi, Polymarket, and Crypto.com in growing on-line exchanges that facilitate the shopping for and promoting of shares associated to numerous outcomes, together with sports activities.
On line casino.org has seen YouTube advertisements from the AGA selling the group’s opinion that sports activities contracts on prediction markets are nothing greater than sports activities betting.
Regardless of the identify, it’s nonetheless sports activities betting,” the AGA website towards sports activities occasion contracts reads.
“Prediction market platforms brazenly flout sports activities betting’s state and tribal oversight in providing sports activities occasion contracts. These platforms disregard very important client protections, generate no advantages for native communities, and threaten the integrity of video games,” the AGA provides.
The AGA spot may be considered in its entirety here.
American Gaming Marketing campaign
The American Gaming Affiliation opposes sports activities occasion contracts on prediction markets on varied claims.
The group contends that prediction markets aren’t aligned with integrity screens that detect and report suspicious betting exercise, due to this fact threatening the integrity of sports activities. The AGA additionally takes difficulty with the truth that prediction markets aren’t subjected to state gaming taxes, nor the federal excise tax that authorized sportsbooks should pay on each wager they take.
“These operators attempt to fake they’re not enabling sports activities wagering, searching for to bypass the business’s efficient regulatory framework, however they’re not fooling anybody,” the AGA stated.
Prediction markets declare they’re operating by-product contracts below the regulation of the Commodity Futures Buying and selling Fee (CFTC). Such prediction markets maintain Designated Contract Market (DCM) licenses from the federal authorities company that oversees derivatives markets, together with futures, swaps, and sure sorts of choices.
Traditionally, DCM licensees have been exchanges facilitating the shopping for and promoting of futures and choices on commodities. Kalshi and Polymarket altered the DCM panorama by providing contracts on every thing from the place Taylor Swift will get married to the end result of the 2024 US presidential election.
Pricey Downside
The AGA believes prediction markets are costing state governments dearly. Since prediction markets started providing contracts involving sports activities, the gaming group estimates that states have missed out on almost $200 million in tax income.
“Authorized gaming generates $53 billion yearly in state and native tax income to fund hospitals, libraries, colleges, and first responders in communities that welcome it. As a result of prediction markets bypass state and tribal authorities totally, they function with out native approval or oversight and contribute nothing to residents. Each greenback prediction markets siphon from the authorized, regulated sports activities betting market drains cash from a framework that helps native communities,” the AGA stated.
