• Loading stock data...
Thursday, August 28, 2025
Front Office Sports Honors winners are here! View the 2025 winners

Crypto.com Continues Super Bowl Futures Contract Despite Feds’ Pause Request

The CFTC requested that Crypto.com “suspend” its Super Bowl contracts, but the exchange is not complying.

Detroit Lions quarterback Jared Goff (16) hands the ball to running back Jahmyr Gibbs (26).
Imagn Images

Crypto.com is not immediately complying with a request from the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) to pause the availability of Super Bowl futures exchange contracts for a review by the federal government.

Shortly before the holidays, Crypto.com added “event contracts” for which team will win the Super Bowl, and they have been trading ever since. 

On Tuesday, the CFTC requested that the site “suspend” the contracts to review their legality. 

However, a Crypto.com spokesperson told Front Office Sports that the contracts would continue to trade, expressing dismay that the regulatory body didn’t wait until after Donald Trump is inaugurated to conduct the review and citing a belief that the contracts are legal based on recent rulings in federal court.

“It is disappointing that the current and imminently departing CFTC leadership would take this action while not allowing the incoming CFTC leadership to determine how free markets operate under its administration. The majority’s decision to apply this rule contradicts recent Federal Court rulings and conflicts with the current Commission’s own statement set forth in its recent rule proposal,” the company said in a statement.

“We remain committed to working with the CFTC and will continue to support our customers and the trading of our sports title event contracts in all 50 states without interruption while we review the CFTC’s notification.”

The CFTC will be in flux when President-elect Trump takes office. The commission’s chair, Rostin Behnam, has announced he will be stepping down from the position on Jan. 20, the day Trump is inaugurated, and leaving the regulatory agency entirely on Feb. 7. Currently, the CFTC has three Democrats and two Republicans, and the balance will inevitably flip when Trump appoints Behnam’s replacement. 

Crypto.com—which has 100 million users in 90 countries, according to its site—is the naming rights sponsor of the arena for the Lakers, Kings, and Sparks in Los Angeles, formerly known as the Staples Center. 

Gambling operators would almost assuredly prefer if the CFTC puts a kibosh on exchange-based sports markets. There has been much discussion in sports business circles about the extent to which exchanges like Crypto.com—as well as Kalshi, Robinhood, and Polymarket—could pose an existential threat to sportsbooks like DraftKings and FanDuel. 

The exchanges are available in all 50 states, whereas the sportsbooks are in 38 states (missing large-population ones like Texas and California) and are susceptible to a more onerous tax structure. Because the exchanges represent trades between two counterparties as opposed to bettors wagering directly against the house in the case of sportsbooks, the traditional 10% “vig” taken by the house in sports bets can be significantly lower on exchange-based trades.

The exchanges go to great lengths to say their trades are not “gambling,” but there is little functional difference between their Super Bowl contracts and the futures you’d find on a traditional sportsbook. 

Depending on where things ultimately land with the CFTC, the exchanges could get ambitious enough to try posting single-game contracts and even potentially player props, which would in theory greatly threaten the sportsbooks’ current stranglehold on the market. 

Last year, the exchange Kalshi emerged victorious in federal court over the CFTC in its bid to post presidential election and other political contracts. 

Linkedin
Whatsapp
Copy Link
Link Copied
Link Copied

What to Read

breaking

Micah Parsons Traded to Packers, Set to Sign Record 4-Year, $188M Deal

The Cowboys reportedly offered Parsons $40.5 million per year in March.
Apr 19, 2025; Boulder, CO, USA; Colorado Buffaloes head coach Deion Sanders during the spring game at Folsom Field.

Coach Prime Enters Year 3 at Colorado With New Challenges

The Buffaloes have sold out their season tickets yet again.

As CFB Programs Add Corporate Field Logos, Are Jersey Patches Next?

Texas is adding a sponsor’s logo to its football field this season.

NFL Preseason Sees 17% Jump in TV Ratings, Best Since 2018

Average audiences for the exhibition games increase sharply from last year.

Featured Today

‘You’re Going to Get Beat Up’: The Liberty’s All-Male Practice Squad

A select group suits up weekly to take on the defending champs.
August 24, 2025

The Honey Deuce Effect: How Tennis Perfected the Signature Cocktail

Sold every 1.5 seconds, they total more than $12 million in sales.
Dec 21, 2024; Austin, Texas, USA; Texas Longhorns quarterback Arch Manning (16) warms up as the Texas Longhorns prepare to play the Clemson Tigers in the first round of the College Football Playoffs at Darrell K Royal Texas Memorial Stadium.
August 23, 2025

Schools Are Hesitant to Allow PE Into Their Athletic Departments

Regardless of budget, schools don’t believe the risk is worth the reward.
Oct 2, 2024; Rosemont, IL, USA; Big Ten commissioner Tony Petitti speaks with the media during the 2024 Big Ten Women’s Basketball media day at Donald E. Stephens Convention Center.
August 22, 2025

‘Not Ready to Jump In’: Power 4 Commissioners Aren’t Sold on PE

Top leaders in college sports have yet to see a satisfactory proposal.
Saquon Barkley

NFL Warns Prediction Markets Are Sports Betting With Less Oversight

League officials say the markets “mimic” sports betting.
A view of the FanDuel Sportsbook betting area at Belterra Park Cincinnati.
August 20, 2025

FanDuel Enters Prediction Markets, but With No Sports

The company is partnering with derivatives exchange CME Group.
Malik Beasley
August 22, 2025

Malik Beasley Could Still Be Charged in Gambling Probe Despite Feds Dropping..

Beasley’s lawyer is hoping his client can return to the NBA.
Sponsored

Gareth Bale on MLS vs EPL, Retirement & Buying Cardiff City

Gareth Bale shares his post-soccer business playbook.
Dec 18, 2024; Inglewood, CA, USA; UNLV Rebels defensive back Rashod Tanner (41) celebrates after defeating the California Golden Bears in the LA Bowl at SoFi Stadium.
August 20, 2025

Robinhood Reactivates Sports Contracts in NJ and NV, Sues State Regulators

The suits were filed the same day Robinhood announced new football offerings.
Jan 20, 2025; Atlanta, GA, USA; Ohio State Buckeyes running back Quinshon Judkins (1) and quarterback Will Howard (18) celebrate after a touchdown against the Notre Dame Fighting Irish during the second half the CFP National Championship college football game at Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
August 19, 2025

Robinhood to Roll Out Football Prediction Markets

The new event contracts come on the heels of Kalshi’s expanded football offerings.
August 18, 2025

Limitations on Prop Bets Supported by NBA, Players’ Union

The union is trying to combat online and in-person harassment.
Feb 9, 2025; New Orleans, LA, USA; Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts (1) against the Kansas City Chiefs during Super Bowl LIX at Ceasars Superdome.
exclusive
August 18, 2025

Kalshi Adds Touchdown Props, Over/Unders Amid Legal Uncertainty

The company is not cowed by its legal challenges.