The NFL is urging the U.S. Supreme Court to take up a hotly contested legal battle over prediction markets, arguing that the federal regulatory body overseeing the burgeoning industry may not be equipped to protect the integrity of sports.
The NFL's amicus brief filed Thursday supports New Jersey's request for a Supreme Court review on whether prediction markets' sports-event contracts, which mimic traditional sports betting, fall under the purview of state gambling regulators. Attorneys general for 39 states and the District of Columbia on Wednesday also filed an amicus brief in support of New Jersey.
A league source told ESPN that its primary desire is for the court to provide clarity on the issue quickly and that the NFL would accept a federal framework if it provided the same regulatory approach as states.
In September, New Jersey asked the Supreme Court to review the legal battle over prediction markets after federal appeals courts made opposing rulings about whether states can enforce gambling laws against Kalshi, a leading U.S. prediction market. The 3rd Circuit Court of Appeals ruled against New Jersey and barred it from enforcing its gambling laws, while the 9th Circuit ruled against Kalshi in Nevada and said sports contracts fall under state laws.
Kalshi has until Nov. 9 to file its response in the case. The Supreme Court is not expected to decide whether to take the case until December at the earliest.
The league noted that on the first Sunday of the 2026 season, more than half of all prediction markets' trading volume -- $1.8 billion out of $3.3 billion -- was related to the NFL. The league wrote in its brief that it's important that the court take the case now "to provide clarity before another NFL season goes by."
"Billions of dollars will be bet on NFL games through prediction markets each season, and any delay from the Court will result in increasing consumer harm and risk to game integrity," the NFL wrote in its brief.
The Commodity Futures Trading Commission has said prediction markets fall under its purview as the federal agency that regulates derivatives markets. But the NFL is concerned that the CFTC does not have the resources or willingness to enforce measures aimed at protecting game integrity.
The NFL has outlined the market types it objects to -- including those related to officiating and ones that can be easily manipulated by a single person -- in multiple letters to the CFTC but says the commission has failed to act.
"The Commission's failure even to reference such objectionable contracts that the NFL identified months ago -- contracts that have been and continue to be listed as contracts by operators like Kalshi -- is deeply concerning and creates significant risks for the NFL's players, coaches, and officials and market participants," the league said.
The CFTC said in a statement to ESPN that it has been in contact with the NFL throughout the rise of prediction markets but that the league did not enter into an agreement with the commission that would better allow them to work together.
"It's unfortunate the NFL declined to sign an MOU with the CFTC which would've provided the league the ability to better discuss, cooperate, and exchange information with us to promote the integrity and resilience of prediction markets," said Brooke Nethercott, public affairs director for the CFTC.
In its brief, the NFL noted that state gambling regulatory bodies have hundreds of employees, while the CFTC has only 543 employees overseeing the entire country.
"Without adequate staff engaged in oversight and enforcement, even the best regulations cannot meaningfully ensure game integrity and consumer protection," the league wrote.