Prediction Markets

CME CEO Duffy Says Sports Prediction Markets Are Gambling, Foresees Supreme Court Case

Posted on: July 23, 2026, 11:50h.

Last updated on: July 23, 2026, 11:50h.

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Todd Shriber Todd Shriber is a senior news reporter covering gaming financials, casino business, stocks, and mergers and acquisitions for Casino.org. Todd got his start in financial markets as a reporter with Bloomberg News...
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Key Points

Duffy says many “prediction markets on sports are gambling”
He believes the Supreme Court will eventually hear a case on the matter
CME has a partnership with FanDuel, though some market observers believe that could be at risk

CME Group (NASDAQ: CME) is expanding in prediction markets, but CEO Terrence Duffy says the exchange operator wants to steer clear of the controversies associated with sports event contracts.

The CME Group logo. CEO Terrence Duffy says some sports event contracts are forms of gambling. (Image: CME Group)

On the company’s second-quarter earnings conference call Wednesday, Duffy said there’s been strong activity around CME’s prediction market offering, but attempted to steer the conversation away from sports — a tact he’s previously taken.

“A lot of these prediction markets on sports are gambling. And I think that, that is going to find its way to the Supreme Court,” Duffy said in response to a question from Morgan Stanley analyst Michael Cyprys. “And that is not something that we want to be a part of participating in right now. As I said earlier, I think a lot of these contracts are susceptible to manipulation when they list some of these small parlays and things of that nature. And those are not markets, those are gambling.”

Those comments may be viewed as interesting considering CME unveiled a partnership with Flutter Entertainment’s (NYSE: FLUT) FanDuel last August. Neither FanDuel nor Flutter were mentioned on the call.

Duffy’s Prediction Market Comments Stir Speculation

CME has consistently said its arrangement with FanDuel is about much more than sports derivatives and the financial services company previously noted the agreement is paying off in the form of new account growth.

One noted prediction market industry observer said event contract volume on CME is badly lagging that of some dedicated yes/no exchanges and that it’s just a matter of time before FanDuel abandons the partnership in favor of a deeper relationship with Crypto.com. The sportsbook operator and cryptocurrency exchange announced a partnership last month. Another pointed out that Duffy’s remarks were made just a day after CME self-certified more sports derivatives. Still, CME says it’s navigating the intersection of prediction markets and sports derivatives carefully.

“Our product set is much more narrow than some of what you might see on some of these other platforms, and that is intentional because we want to be very careful with what we are putting out for trade to make sure that it meets all the requirements that we see from our regulator,” said CFO Lynne Fitzpatrick on the call.

She added that CME had 140,000 accounts trading event contracts in the June quarter, up 13% from the first quarter. Average daily volume was north of four million contracts, representing 40% quarter-over-quarter growth.

Duffy’s Supreme Court Comment Has Merit

Duffy’s remark about the Supreme Court eventually hearing a case pertaining to prediction markets’ ability to continue offering sports event contracts has credence. New Jersey is readying a related case in which it will ask the high court to rule on whether event contracts are legitimate financial derivatives or another form of sports betting.

Some legal experts believe that because prediction markets are relying on federal preemption, it’s a safe bet the Supreme Court will hear a related case. There’s also some thought that the court could consolidate various state-level litigation against prediction markets into a single case.

Another school of legal thought is that the court will opt to hear a case brought by tribal casino operators, but what is clear is that it will be 2027 at the earliest before a prediction market case finds its way to the Supreme Court.

Todd Shriber is a senior news reporter covering gaming financials, casino business, stocks, and mergers and acquisitions for Casino.org.

Todd got his start in financial markets as a reporter with Bloomberg News. Later, he became a trader at a Southern California-based long/short hedge fund, where he specialized in the trading sector and international ETFs leading up to and during the financial crisis. He joined Casino.org in 2019.

Currently, Todd analyzes, researches, and writes on ETFs for various web-based publications and financial services firms. Shriber has been featured and quoted in Barron's, CNBC.com, and The Wall Street Journal. His work can also be found on Benzinga, ETF Daily News, ETF Trends, MarketWatch, Fox Business, and Nasdaq.com.

He currently resides in Las Vegas, where he enjoys golf and taking his black lab to the dog park. He's also an avid sports fan and likes to wager on college football and the NBA. You can also find him at the three-card poker and roulette table, even though he knows better.

Contact Todd at todd.shriber@casino.org.