Kalshi Expands Offerings Before Football Season Kicks Off

Kalshi, a prediction exchange with federal oversight, is broadening its range of products just as the football season is about to begin. The New York-based company made an announcement on Monday that it has approved a new set of sports contracts. These include point spreads, over/unders, and touchdown props, options that people link to regular sportsbooks.

Prediction Market Kalshi Targets Football Season With Fresh Self-Certified Listings

Kalshi sent the new listings to the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), which oversees Kalshi as a derivatives exchange. The contracts can start trading right away because they were self-certified, unless the regulator steps in. The CFTC has three options: let the filings stand, reject them, or start a more thorough review that could take up to three months.

Kalshi already lets people bet on game winners and championship results. By adding spreads and player-focused props, the company aims to offer an experience similar to state-licensed operators. The company chose this time on purpose as football season is the busiest time of year for both sportsbooks and prediction markets.

CEO Tarek Mansour said in a press release that they expanded to keep up with the rising need for sports trading under federal supervision. He claimed that putting these markets under CFTC control gives users protections like those in financial markets, while also ensuring openness and safeguards against tampering. Mansour also pointed out the chance to cut into the illegal betting world, which experts in the field value at over $80 billion each year.

Sports Contracts Drive $2B of Kalshi Trades

Since it began operations, Kalshi has seen more than $6 billion in trades, with about $2 billion coming from sports-related items added earlier this year. The company also stressed how sports matter to the wider economy, noting that game results and win margins can affect media ratings and ads linked to broadcast rights worth billions.

The new products might cause regulatory problems. Gambling boards in New Jersey, Nevada, and Maryland have already raised concerns about Kalshi’s strategy, saying that contracts looking like sports bets should be under state control. Kalshi, on the other hand, has claimed in court that federal power is the only authority in this area, pointing to the Commodity Exchange Act. Legal fights remain unsettled as football season gets closer.

People who monitor the industry think adding spreads and props could be a move toward more complex products like parlays, which bring in a lot of money for big sportsbooks. Whether Kalshi will grow that much in the end will depend on how regulators react to the current filings.

At present, people all over the US have the chance to access agreements that reflect some of the most common football wagers. However, whether these will stay available in the long run depends on upcoming legal and regulatory fights.