By Nick Devor
Major League Baseball is all in on prediction markets.
MLB and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, the federal regulator of the event contracts sold on prediction markets, signed a memorandum of understanding on Thursday to "to discuss, cooperate, and exchange information concerning issues of common interest, such as the integrity of professional baseball and the event contract markets related thereto."
The agreement is not legally binding, but is the first such agreement between a federal agency and sports league.
"We've committed to work together to protect the integrity and resilience of prediction markets relating to professional baseball," CFTC Chair Mike Selig said in a post on X.
The news comes amid media reports that Polymarket inked an exclusive multiyear partnership with the MLB on Thursday, giving the prediction-market platform exclusive rights to MLB team logos and marks.
The MLB is only the latest sports league to partner with a prediction market, following the National Hockey League, Major League Soccer, and Ultimate Fighting Championship.
Polymarket's deal with the MLB was first reported by Front Office Sports. The prediction market has a data sharing partnership with Dow Jones, the publisher of Barron's.
Integrity in professional baseball has been top of mind following criminal charges against two Cleveland Guardians pitchers in November. The players allegedly coordinated with gamblers to fix individual pitches.
The CFTC's coordination with the MLB is further evidence that the regulator fully backs prediction markets tied to sporting events, which state gambling regulators across the country believe should be treated as sports betting, not financial products.
This week, Arizona's state attorney general filed criminal charges against Kalshi, another prediction-market platform, saying that the firm was operating an illegal gambling business in the state.
"The charges are meritless, and we look forward to fighting them in court," Kalshi said in a post on X. In another post, Selig called the charges "entirely inappropriate."
Write to Nick Devor at nicholas.devor@barrons.com
This content was created by Barron's, which is operated by Dow Jones & Co. Barron's is published independently from Dow Jones Newswires and The Wall Street Journal.
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
March 19, 2026 11:13 ET (15:13 GMT)
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