Tribal gaming leaders called on Congress to shut down prediction markets that circumvent the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act and state-tribal compacts. At an August 4 Senate committee hearing, tribal representatives said platforms are using federal commodities law to offer sports betting without licensing or revenue-sharing obligations.
Prediction-market operators claim their products are financial instruments under the jurisdiction of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission. Tribes disagree: contracts on sporting events are wagers, whatever the label. Senator Brian Schatz noted that for the player the experience is identical — a bet on the Philadelphia 76ers winning the NBA championship looks the same in a sportsbook and in a prediction app.
Oneida Nation Chairman Tehassi Hill pointed out that prediction markets offer the same products: money lines, totals, parlays, player props. Tribes spend more than $450m annually and employ over 6,000 people for regulation, age verification, auditing and responsible gaming. The CFTC, according to tribal regulators, lacks gaming-oversight expertise and acts without consulting tribes.
National Congress of American Indians President Mark Macarro said lawmakers never intended to make the CFTC a gambling regulator through the back door. He cited the position of the 2010 Dodd-Frank Act's authors and a letter from 44 state attorneys general demanding the CFTC withdraw its proposed rule.
Tribal gaming generated $46.2bn in gross revenue in fiscal 2025. An early estimate of prediction-market impact in California is around 5%. Tribes back bill S. 4160, the Prediction Markets Are Gambling Act, which would bar CFTC-regulated platforms from listing sports and casino contracts.
