Weekly News Desk
Here are some stories you may have missed from another whirlwind week
Whether you are new to Secure Stakes or have been here since the beginning, if you enjoy my weekly posts on the intersection of sports integrity, sports gambling regulation, and homeland security, I’d love your support as a paid subscriber. Paid subscriptions make it possible for me to devote more time to deep-dive analysis, original investigations, and exclusive insights that don’t appear anywhere else. Plus, you’ll get early access to upcoming projects designed specifically for professionals working in this space and podcast episodes.
And we are nearly at 500 subscribers, so feel free to share this with friends or colleagues to help get us there.
Caught Red Handed (USA Today). Two Mississippi State Football players received low level NCAA violations for gambling on the Super Bowl and the NBA All-star game via the prediction market Kalshi. The infractions were caught by an integrity monitoring service and occurred in February 2026. It is unclear why the NCAA did not make these incidents public sooner.
Why does it matter. My guess is this was not disclosed because it was not required. It seems the USA Today, via the Clarion Ledger, obtained the documents outside of regular disclosure channels it seems, and the affected players’ names were redacted. The lack of transparency is problematic, though. The NCAA and its member institutions should be an open book when it comes to gambling infractions so fans, gamblers, and prediction market participants have faith in fair play. It shouldn’t take 6 months and a leak for this to become known. Beyond that, it is possible the players in question did not understand the nuance of prediction markets— that they are in the same category as gambling and therefore off limits. Universities (and other institutions) need to undertake a serious effort to educate and train their staff.
And Another One (CBS News). The New York City Council announced this week that it is investigating four prediction market platforms for allegations of deceptive marketing. The four platforms are Coinbase, Gemini Titan, Kalshi, and Polymarket.
Why does it matter. By my count, I think seventeen states have active litigation or enforcement actions against Kalshi, Polymarket, and their competitors. This marks the first city that is bringing some sort of legal action against the platforms, though, which is notable. While the platforms seems to have adopted the legislative affairs strategy of social media and tech platforms of the 2010s, state legislative and regulatory bodies seem to have gone in a different direction than their predecessors. This remains an interesting saga to follow.
Money Moves (Bloomberg; paywall). Newly released survey data indicates that over 25% of younger (Gen Z) investors see sports betting as “part of their long-term financial strategy”. In the same survey over half of that Gen Z cohort said that money they initially earmarked for investment had been reallocated to sports gambling.
Why does it matter. What initially started my research and writing that led to Secure Stakes was the realization that a cohort of young men were being aggressively marketed by sportsbooks. When a group of young men, in a precarious economy, lose all of their money and do not have domestic stability, it can present an on-ramp towards crime or violence. It won’t be that for everyone, but precedent says it likely will be for some. And now over 1 in 4 young men see sports gambling (a losing proposition for most) as a key to their long term financial stability. If this is not a wake up call to treat these issues with a security lens then I think you are missing the lessons of the past.
Buy Low, Sell High (NBC News). Just over a year after purchasing the LA Lakers for a record $10 billion, owner Mark Walter is selling the team to Josh Kushner and Bob Iger for $12.5 billion.
Why does it matter. The sale itself doesn’t really impact the sports integrity landscape much unless you want to consider that living up to a $12.5 billion valuation might require new revenue streams from gambling and prediction markets. And that last part is why I included this news item. One of the team’s new principal owners, Josh Kushner, runs a private equity firm that is invested in Kalshi. I would not be surprised if the Lakers move faster than other teams to embrace partnerships with the platform.
Action, Please (ESPN). One U.S. Senator and two Members of the House asked MLB and its Players’ Union to take action against promotional deals with betting operators, like the personalized video featuring Bryce Harper that was commissioned by a major sportsbook.
Why does it matter. It is important to know here that Harper denies knowing this request came from the corporate office of a sportsbook, and he has no endorsement deals of any kind with sportsbooks or prediction markets. But for the federal legislators, this seems like tilting at windmills. If you read this newsletter, you know that earlier this year MLB entered into an agreement to make Polymarket the official prediction market of the MLB, with attendant information sharing protocols. If you are a regular watcher of MLB Networks Big Inning product, you no doubt saw the Polymarket logo plastered all over the broadcast this week. So while I applaud their effort to enact common sense restrictions, I don’t expect much to come of it in the near term.
Horsing Around (ESPN). Five horse races that took place in New York and New Jersey are under investigation after sportsbooks in the U.S. and U.K. flagged suspicious betting activity to the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority.
Why does it matter. Integrity incidents are not just for humans these days, apparently. This is another reminder that oftentimes it is the lower-visibility events that can draw the attention of match fixers. While incidents in the NBA or MLB deservedly draw headlines, sometimes the lower tier events may be easier to fix because of the few eyeballs on them. Kudos to the sportsbooks and HISA for their work on this case.