Lawyers for the NBA and MLB sent letters to the CFTC Thursday asking that the leagues receive more control over what event markets are offered on their sports. Kristian Tuxen Ladegaard Berg/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
The NBA asked the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), the federal body that oversees predictions markets, to bar athletes and league and team personnel from trading on its league as the CFTC considers what regulations to set for the emerging industry. The CFTC had sought comments for new rules before it took action.
Dan Spillane, a top lawyer for the NBA, sent a letter to the CFTC Thursday asking the agency to give the league a level of say in what predictions markets do with its league. The league also requested control over which markets are offered, as well as for the commission to prohibit events contracts on player props, officiating, injuries, transactions and fan behavior because, he wrote, those “markets are readily susceptible to manipulation and/or improper use of confidential information and have a negative effect on perceived game and league integrity.”
Spillane also asked the CFTC to allow league input on which events markets are created before they are made available to the public.
“ln general, leagues should have control over the types of markets offered on their competitions and businesses, as they are best positioned to judge which markets pose untenable integrity risks or are otherwise susceptible to manipulation,” the letter said.
Major League Baseball also sent a letter to the CFTC asking that leagues be given a certain amount of latitude in setting predictions markets events because they, the letter said, are “best placed to identify which markets related to their respective sports raise significant manipulation or insider trading concerns.”
Player unions for the NBA, NFL, MLB, MLS and NHL sent a joint letter that argued for restrictions. The letter asked the CFTC to ban what it described as “negative” contracts, which they say are ones that allow people to bet on unders, if a player is hurt or penalized, or if certain words are said during a live broadcast and event. The unions also asked the CFTC to enforce fan conduct policies to protect players inside arenas and venues, as well to ban trading on unauthorized player health data.
May 2, 2026
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