Kalshi Signs Prediction-Market Partnerships With Five MLB Clubs

The five agreements must be distinguished from MLB’s existing relationship with Polymarket. The league previously established an MLB prediction-market integrity framework involving Polymarket and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, with a focus on competition safeguards, monitoring and information sharing.

Kalshi’s announcement does not state that this league-level arrangement has been replaced or amended. Instead, the new agreements give Kalshi commercial rights through individual franchises.

This creates a two-tier partnership structure. MLB can maintain a league-level relationship with one prediction-market operator while individual clubs negotiate separate commercial agreements with another. The distinction is important because club marketing rights do not automatically amount to a league-wide endorsement or operating agreement.

League rules concerning integrity, official data, restricted participants and the promotion of event contracts may still influence how the club partnerships are activated. Operators and rights holders will therefore need to define the scope of branding, customer engagement and product promotion carefully.

According to Kalshi’s official announcement, the partnerships will include in-stadium signage alongside social, online, radio and fan engagement campaigns.

The Dodgers agreement is the most detailed example disclosed by the company. Kalshi-branded LED signage will appear around Dodger Stadium, while the platform will receive naming rights to the stadium’s Gold Glove Bar. Supporters will also have access to Dodgers-specific offers and on-site activations in Centerfield Plaza.

The other agreements are expected to provide Kalshi with a combination of stadium visibility and club-controlled digital inventory. These channels allow the company to place its brand alongside established sports properties without requiring a new league-wide MLB partnership.

Kalshi attributed the commercial expansion to increased participation in its baseball markets. The company reported that baseball-related trading volume had risen 36 times compared with the previous year. No financial terms for the five club agreements were disclosed.

For B2B stakeholders, the deals show how prediction-market platforms are moving beyond digital customer acquisition and investing in physical sports environments. Stadium inventory, team media channels and club-specific experiences provide access to established fan communities while building wider recognition of the prediction-market category.

The location of four of the five clubs brings the regulatory debate surrounding sports event contracts directly into the partnerships.

The Dodgers, Padres and Giants are based in California, which does not operate a regulated commercial sports betting market. Prediction-market exchanges have nevertheless offered sports event contracts under federal commodities oversight, maintaining that these products are financial instruments rather than state-regulated wagers.

California officials have supported legal efforts defending state authority over sports gaming and gambling laws. Kalshi’s presence at three major California ballparks therefore illustrates the difference between the availability of commercial sponsorship inventory and the unresolved regulatory classification of the underlying product.

The Massachusetts position is more immediate. A state court has restricted Kalshi from offering sports event contracts to customers in the state unless the company complies with Massachusetts sports gaming requirements. Kalshi has challenged that position.

The Red Sox agreement means Kalshi branding can be visible through Fenway Park, digital channels and media integrations while access to the company’s sports contracts remains restricted for users in Massachusetts. Marketing teams will need to distinguish clearly between brand promotion and local product availability.

The broader legal question is whether sports event contracts fall primarily under federal commodities regulation or state gambling law. The CFTC’s proposed prediction-market framework seeks to clarify how different contracts should be reviewed, including the distinction between broad sporting outcomes and granular markets carrying higher manipulation risks.

Court decisions have produced different outcomes across the country. A recent ruling involving Kalshi’s sports contracts in Utah supported the state’s ability to enforce its gambling restrictions, while decisions in some other jurisdictions have given greater weight to federal pre-emption arguments.

For sports organisations, the five MLB club agreements show that prediction-market sponsorship is expanding while the applicable regulatory framework remains unsettled. Future partnerships may require state-specific activation rules, clear responsible-participation controls and contractual provisions covering changes in product availability.