End Game: PMs Don't Cannibalize, DraftKings/FanDuel Midterms

The U.S. sports betting world moves quickly and unpredictably in 2026. In order to properly take stock of it all, we offer InGame’s “EndGame,” an end-of-week compilation of the top storylines, some overlooked items, and all the other news bits from this past week that we found interesting.

Analyst: Prediction markets don’t cannibalize

Since Kalshi offered its first Super Bowl sports event contract ahead of the 2025 Super Bowl, the sports betting industry has been watching and weighing how much effect the products are having on the traditional sports betting market. Jefferies’ analyst James Wheatcroft Monday wrote the Missouri launch offered a new perspective, and that he doesn’t see major cause for concern.

“If prediction markets were cannibalizing OSB in regulated states, we would have expected to see cracks in Missouri’s launch month in either handle … and/or promotions … Instead, Missouri has delivered the strongest launch month handle in recent years with the lowest level of promo spend.”

The Missouri Gaming Commission Jan. 30 reported $543 million in handle for the first full month (December) of wagering, including $125 million in promotional deductions. For comparison, Maryland (comparable population) launched mobile operators in November 2022, and in December of that year, operators took $497 million in wagers. Missouri collected $521,200 in taxes on a 10% tax rate, but operators offered $125 million in promos, and had collective adjustable gross revenue of -$20.8 million. Operators can deduct promotional spend up of to 25% of handle.

Jill R. Dorson

DraftKings, FanDuel get political

DraftKings and FanDuel are spending “millions of dollars” on the upcoming midterm elections, reported Popular.info Monday. This is a “sea change” for the sports betting industry, which has hitherto focused almost entirely on state politics, according to the story.

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It traced DraftKings contributions of $2.5 million in the past three months to Republican PACs; FanDuel donated $1 million to Republican causes and $500,000 to Democratic. In 2024, both made $500,000 contributions to the Republican National Committee, at the time the only beneficence aimed at national politics in the companies’ histories.

Popular.info concludes that the two companies are becoming more active in their efforts to advocate for their recent expansion into prediction markets and oppose federal regulation of sports betting.

Rozier wins, loses

Suspended NBA guard Terry Rozier had a good and bad week.

On administrative leave as he awaits trial on federal sports corruption charges stemming from the dragnet that also snared banned former Toronto Raptors player Jontay Porter, Rozier was awarded his frozen salary Monday after a ruling from an arbitrator.

Roughly $26.6 million in salary had been held in escrow since Rozier was charged in October with money laundering and wire fraud. The arbitrator ruled that players cannot be placed on unpaid leave unless involved in cases of domestic or child abuse, according to ESPN.

On Tuesday, not unexpectedly, the Eastern District of New York responded with zeal to refute Rozier’s request that his sports corruption charges be dismissed. Attorneys had argued that the federal government overstepped its purview in charging Rozier.

Rozier, who has pleaded not guilty, has a status conference scheduled for March.

Brant James

gov.uscourts.nyed.537701.17.0_1 Download

3100/1 if Patriots win

A tweet on Jan. 25 from Jeff Benson, director of operations for Circa Sports, revealed that an extremely farsighted gambler bet $100 on an exacta (the top two finishers in order) on Aug. 25 during the NFL pre-season. The wager was on the New England Patriots beating the Seattle Seahawks in the Super Bowl.

The Patriots opened as an 80-1 longshot to win the Super Bowl at the Westgate Las Vegas Super Book, while the Seattle Seahawks opened at 75-1 at Circa Sports. The exacta went off at 3100/1 odds at Circa.

If the Patriots prevail, this bettor, sweating the exacta throughout the entire regular season and especially the playoffs, will win $310,000 — believed to be the longest longshot ever to cash at Circa Sports.

Fun (and not so fun for us) to look back thru some of the long-shot Super Bowl exacta bets we took before the season started with the way things have unfolded. One notable bet that stands out;

Date Placed: Aug 25
Selection: Patriots defeat Seahawks
Odds: 3100/1

$100 > $310,000 pic.twitter.com/FZhpc3QiB7
— Jeffrey Benson (@JeffreyBenson12) January 26, 2026

400 hours of PGA Betcast

PGA Tour Live Betcast, which debuted in the 2025 season with 50 hours of coverage of six PGA Tour events, is being expanded, according to ESPN. Dubbed “the first all-day watch-and-bet experience for golf fans,” Betcast will air during 12 marquee PGA TOUR events throughout the year, beginning with WM Phoenix Open, which wraps up on Sunday. Betcast at each event will air for more than eight hours during each of the four days of play on the ESPN app, for a total of 400-plus hours. Betcast is sponsored by DraftKings.

Odds and ends

BetMGM this week revised its terms of service, which now explicitly prohibit athlete harassment. BetMGM’s previous terms allowed account suspension for any lawful reason, including harassment, but the new language “provides even more clarity around the policy” to prohibit “harassing or abusive language toward athletes, coaches, or team or league personnel.”
The 2026 Special Olympics USA welcomed FanDuel Wednesday as an official partner. The games are set to take place June 20–26 in Minneapolis and FanDuel employees will be on hand as volunteers, representing the company’s “overall commitment to making sports accessible to everyone,” according to the press release.
PrizePicks announced Wednesday its return to New York to launch its peer-to-peer fantasy sports platform. PrizePicks ceased its traditional against-the-house paid contests in New York in early 2024, following a $15 million settlement with the New York State Gaming Commission over operating without a license and forcing a change in the model to the peer-to-peer Arena format, rather than player-versus-house contests that mimic prop betting.
SIS Content Services announced Thursday the expansion of its esports portfolio with the launch of H2H Global Gaming League (H2HGGL) eFootball. Betting on the eFootball games is now available via an SIS partnership with Hard Rock Bet.