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.
Senator seeks to ban microbet props
Everyone knows it’s a heavy lift to get Congress to take action on the gambling front. Whether talking about legislation relating to taxation, prediction markets, bet-rigging scandals, marketing concerns, or anything else tied to the gaming industry on Capitol Hill, bills are introduced, hearings are convened, press conferences are held, public statements are issued, and then … nothing.
The latest chatter is coming from a somewhat unexpected source, in that U.S. Sen. Brian Schatz’s home state of Hawaii is one where there’s virtually no gambling industry to speak of. But Spectrum News Hawaii reported this week that the Democrat serving in his second elected term is preparing to introduce legislation that would outlaw much of the microbetting offered by sportsbooks. The bill would also grant the Federal Trade Commission authority to do more to combat illegal offshore gambling.
Microbetting prop bets have come under increased scrutiny in the past year for their potential use in bet-rigging scandals, such as the outcome of pitches thrown by hurlers for the Cleveland Guardians.
“Micro prop [bets are] insidious in that [they] can be manipulated by a player or anyone else,” Schatz said at a meeting of the Senate Commerce Subcommittee on Sports Betting. “The more micro you get, the more insidious it is from an integrity standpoint. But it also taps into the addictive, manic, algorithmically driven problem that we’re dealing with. I think this particular problem is especially acute and needs to be dealt with immediately.”
One in four have used prediction markets
As a possible indication of how much prediction markets have entered the mainstream, one recent survey has reported that one in four Americans say they have placed a prediction market bet. That finding came out of a report by Credible Operations Inc., a company in the consumer finance field that commissioned an April survey of more than 1,000 American adults.
The report identified a particular concern with how people perceive the financial safety of using prediction markets, as 56% of those surveyed agreed that the level of risk with them is about the same as stocks or crypto.
“The perception that prediction markets carry the same level of risk as stocks or crypto highlights just how dangerous they can be,” said Credible Senior Loans Editor Meredith Mangan. “With most prediction market bets, you lose everything if you’re wrong. This is distinctly different from investing in crypto or stocks — which typically retain some value even when prices fall.”
Among those surveyed, more claimed to have used predictions markets for a gain (63%) than a loss (29%), but the report noted self-reported gains “aren’t necessarily reflected in reality” and other reports have suggested there are almost three times as many losers as winners on Kalshi.
Turn on the news, hear about PMs
Speaking of prediction markets (as we often do here), mainstream broadcast networks seem to be waking up to them with heavy focus on the industry in newscasts these days.
ABC News did a report headlined: “Survival is at stake: Inside prediction markets’ race to curb inside trading.” It relied heavily on an interview with Robert DeNault, Kalshi’s head of enforcement, on the company’s efforts to preserve integrity in the trading process. That’s been a big issue, of course, in the face of insider trading controversies surrounding contracts such as those tied to the ouster of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, Google searches, and results of the Survivor reality TV show.
DeNault told the network that monitoring to head off insider trading is now Kalshi’s “No. 1 priority.” ABC reported that Kalshi launched more than 200 investigations last year and has eclipsed that figure in the first quarter of 2026 alone.
In its own report this week, CNN focused on the perils in particular for the 18-to-20 age group, those who are too young to wager with legal sportsbooks in most of the U.S. but able to easily trade on prediction markets. The network news report emphasized the common theory that young adults haven’t yet developed impulse control in their brains to deal with the potential for gambling addiction.
“Addiction experts and state regulators say this has opened the door to an emerging public health crisis,” CNN reported. Of course, most young adults also have yet to develop the financial resources to deal with any problems they encounter from excessive wagering. Philip Sullivan, who runs the Florida Council on Compulsive Gambling’s helpline, said many of the under-21 callers reaching out for help due to prediction site use had relapsed from addictions to other betting platforms.
Odds and ends
- The two federally recognized tribes in Connecticut are seeking to intervene on the state’s side in the lawsuit brought against it by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, according to a ReadWrite report. Connecticut is one of many states whose officials sent cease-and-desist letters to prediction markets ordering the shutdown of their sports event contracts, prompting the suit by the prediction markets’ federal regulator. The Mohegan Tribe and the Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Nation share both Connecticut’s concern and those of tribes in other states that are battling Kalshi, Crypto.com, and other operators they say violate tribal gaming jurisdiction.
- In the latest step involving the gambling issues surrounding Texas Tech quarterback Brendan Sorsby, the NCAA has denied his request for eligibility in the 2026 football season, ESPN reported. The report said the school plans to appeal the NCAA’s ruling, which resulted from findings that Sorsby previously violated rules prohibiting sports betting. Sorsby, who admitted entering a gambling treatment program, has a lawsuit against the NCAA pending in Lubbock County Court seeking his reinstatement.
- With the World Cup fast approaching, Fanatics announced that its Fanatics Markets prediction market subsidiary and ADI Predictstreet have launched an interactive FIFA World Cup 2026 Hub experience for sports fans. The site is designed to provide tournament news, official player data, and other information in addition to expanded global football prediction markets.
ICYMI
Despite NJ Petition, SCOTUS Probably Won’t Hear Prediction Market Case Yet — But It Will Eventually
Google Engineer Charged In Polymarket Insider Trading Case
The President’s ‘Truth’ On Prediction Markets Is Both Notable And Meaningless
Prediction Market Parlays Have Lower Margins Than Sportsbooks, But Do Traders Lose Money Faster?
Gemini Is Latest Prediction Market Operator To Self-Certify Parlays
Rep. Titus, BetMGM’s Taylor: Prediction Markets Have Unfair Advantage
Ex-NBA Player Rozier Accused Of Giving Bettors Inside Info On Leaving Game In Exchange For $100,000
Gamblers Anonymous Could Learn A Thing Or Two From AA And Opioid Treatment
