Major US Soccer League Partners with Polymarket for Prediction Markets
Major League Soccer has selected Polymarket as its official prediction market partner, aiming to provide fans with enhanced opportunities for deeper engagement with soccer.
A multi-year agreement has been reached between Polymarket and Major League Soccer, America's premier professional soccer league, establishing Polymarket as the sole prediction market partner for both the league and its primary competition, the Leagues Cup.
On Monday, both MLS and Polymarket announced their collaborative effort to develop "new fan experiences," including second-screen engagement features that generally encompass data analytics, statistical information, and wagering opportunities.
"As soccer's audience continues to grow and evolve in the US, fans are looking for new ways to engage more deeply with the game," said Polymarket founder and CEO Shayne Coplan.
According to both organizations, the collaboration arrives during a period of "sustained momentum" for soccer in America, particularly as the FIFA World Cup is scheduled to take place in North America and Mexico later this year.
This agreement represents yet another significant partnership for prediction market platforms, which have secured arrangements to be integrated into various major sports leagues, news media content, and Google's primary search engine platform.
According to MLS and Polymarket, the partnership incorporates protective measures "designed to protect the integrity of MLS and Leagues Cup matches," which include independent oversight and monitoring of trading activities.
Prediction market volumes rise amid legal battles
Trading volumes on leading platforms such as Polymarket and Kalshi have consistently reached new all-time peaks following the Commodity Futures Trading Commission's approval of prediction markets, despite ongoing efforts by numerous US states to impose restrictions on these platforms.
In terms of trading volume, Kalshi has surpassed Polymarket, recording an unprecedented weekly total of $2.15 billion during the week beginning Jan. 12, based on data from Token Terminal.
During that same period, Polymarket experienced its highest-ever weekly volume, with trading activity reaching nearly $825 million on the platform.
In recent weeks, the CFTC released a no-action letter to Bitnomial, a crypto derivatives exchange, granting permission for the platform to operate a prediction market and indicating the agency would not pursue enforcement actions against comparable platforms.
Nevertheless, several US states including Nevada, New Jersey, Tennessee and Massachusetts have filed lawsuits against Kalshi and other prediction market operators regarding the offering of sports event contracts, contending these constitute unauthorized sports betting operations.
In response, the platforms, with Kalshi at the forefront, have mounted a defense, asserting that the CFTC maintains exclusive regulatory authority over prediction markets.