The campaign to rein in sports prediction markets has officially gone bipartisan. Nevada Representatives Steven Horsford and Mark Amodei have unveiled the Prediction Markets Are Gambling Act, a bill that would ban federally regulated exchanges from listing sports and casino-style event contracts while leaving traditional hedging markets untouched. Supporters say it's about protecting consumers, tribal sovereignty, gaming jobs and state tax revenues. Prediction market firms, unsurprisingly, see it rather differently. 

ProphetX is taking its sports prediction markets to a new audience through a partnership with Players' Lounge, the real-money gaming platform popular with competitive Madden, NBA 2K, Call of Duty and Fortnite players. The integration gives eligible users access to CFTC-regulated sports event contracts directly within the Players' Lounge ecosystem, covering everything from NFL games to championship futures. ProphetX says the move is part of a wider strategy to bring prediction markets to digitally native audiences through business partnerships rather than traditional sportsbooks. 

Pressure on prediction markets is no longer coming just from regulators—Congress is joining the party. Nevada Representatives Steven Horsford and Mark Amodei have introduced bipartisan legislation that would ban sports betting-style event contracts on federally regulated prediction markets, while also targeting casino-style games offered on platforms such as Kalshi. 

The proposal comes amid an escalating legal tug-of-war between the CFTC, state regulators and the gaming industry over who gets to police event contracts. If passed, the bill would redraw the line between financial forecasting and gambling.

Nevada congressmen introduce bipartisan bill to ban sports betting on prediction markets
Rep. Steven Horsford (D-NV) and Rep. Mark Amodei’s (R-NV) bill would also ban casino-style games on sites such as Kalshi.
Via @MiniRacker @TheNVIndy https://t.co/5lchAOq9tT

The prediction market industry is making its case in the court of public opinion as well as the courtroom. Appearing on CNBC, former CFTC Commissioner Brian Quintenz argued that companies in the Coalition for Prediction Markets have "regulatory compliance in their DNA," pushing back against claims that federally regulated exchanges operate in a legal grey area. 

The comments come as legal battles over sports event contracts intensify across multiple states, with regulators and the gaming industry questioning where derivatives end and gambling begins. 

“The companies in this coalition have regulatory compliance in their DNA,” former CFTC Commissioner @BrianQuintenz on @SquawkCNBC this morning. pic.twitter.com/WB2tpQOuRs

The legal scrum over sports prediction markets just picked up another heavyweight. The American Gaming Association (AGA) has filed a motion to intervene in the CFTC's lawsuit against New York State, throwing its support behind the state's efforts to regulate sports event contracts. The CFTC, meanwhile, is arguing that federally regulated derivatives exchanges should be shielded from state enforcement under federal law. Translation: one side says Washington should call the shots, the other says Albany still has a whistle. 

NEW: The American Gaming Association has filed a motion to intervene in the CFTC's lawsuit against New York State over sports prediction markets. The CFTC's lawsuit is seeking to prevent the @NewYorkStateAG from enforcing state law against DCMs offering sports-event contracts.