There is a “new front in the sports betting wars” as prediction markets “muscle onto the scene and challenge established sportsbooks for the same customers, media inventory and partnerships,” according to Jon Springer of AD AGE. National TV spending by wagering brands reached an estimated $269.8M through Aug. 27 this year, “up 40% from the same period in 2025,” per measurement company iSpot. DraftKings and FanDuel “accounted for nearly two-thirds of that investment.” The company noted that prediction market operator Kalshi had “already claimed the third-largest share before the start of the NFL season.” Sources noted that the “spending surge comes as more consumers take up online betting and established sportsbooks fight to put greater emphasis on loyalty and retention.” Kalshi spent $41.4M on national TV ads this year through Aug. 27, placing it “third among wagering marketers.” Kalshi “dramatically ramped up its marketing investment from $22,800 in the first quarter of 2025 to” $20.4M in the first quarter of 2026. Sportsbooks, especially in their early years, “approached advertising as a customer land grab, using direct-response ads aimed at core audiences.” Experts said that as betting products “become harder to distinguish themselves from one another, the competition is shifting toward identity and belonging.” Prediction markets are “still establishing what their brands stand for, and some are using provocation to get noticed.” In addition to Novig’s recent Sydney Sweeney ad and Betr’s “Entourage” affair, Polymarket Sports “has built a profane Instagram account” with nearly 500,000 followers (AD AGE, 9/18).
