Underdog on Saturday announced the launch of its in-house prediction market platform. InGame reported Thursday that Underdog had self-certified its first contracts for the exchange. Per the company press release, the new platform is completely owned and operated by Underdog and licensed with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission.
Since going live last fall with prediction options, including sports event contracts, Underdog has directed customers to contracts from Crypto.com and Kalshi, which operate as designated contract markets (DCMs), or exchanges. Underdog in March bought Aristotle Exchange, the DCM arm of PredictIt, so it could operate its own exchange rather than routing customers elsewhere.
With the launch, Underdog customers will be able to access daily fantasy and prediction options in a single app. Customers have had the prediction option since last September when Underdog became the first sports gaming platform to offer it. Since that time, state-licensed sports betting companies DraftKings, Fanatics Betting & Gaming, and FanDuel have launched their own prediction markets, including sports event contracts in some states.
Last fall, Underdog was live with daily fantasy in multiple states and offered legal sports betting in North Carolina. Since then, Underdog has withdrawn from the wagering scene, shuttering its North Carolina platform in December and withdrawing applications in Missouri and Ohio.
According to the press release, Underdog is now the first “sports company with the complete prediction market license stack.”
DFS to legal wagering to predictions …
Underdog CEO and co-founder Jeremy Levine said he believes options for sports fans in the U.S. will continue to expand and evolve.
“Despite incredible changes in the U.S. market in recent years, through the twisting journey from fantasy sports to regulated sports betting to prediction markets, we still see an industry that far too often simply misses in serving sports fans,” he said. “Now with our own exchange, we’re going to unlock so much more for sports fans. Prediction markets are largely about sports, and Underdog is the best at sports.”
On Thursday, Underdog self-certified seven contracts — three in baseball, three in basketball, and one that would cover multiple sports. The filings also indicated that Underdog would be using a market maker.
