Americans bet billions of dollars on the Super Bowl last weekend, with prediction markets offering bettors a new way to burn their hard-earned cash.
The American Gaming Association estimates Americans wagered more than $1.7 billion on Super Bowl Sunday through legal sports books alone.
It’s safe to assume users placed many of these bets online. Case in point: DraftKings, one of the biggest online sportsbooks in America, became the fifth most popular free app on the Apple App Store over the weekend, and the most popular sports app.
DraftKings claims it stood to pay out as much as $8 billion on Super Bowl-related bets Sunday — a massive amount of exposure driven, in part, by the record-breaking number of trades made on its prediction platform, DraftKings Predictions.
Prediction markets are federally regulated futures exchanges which allow users to trade event contracts — futures which become valuable when an event occurs.
DraftKings Predictions offers sports event contracts which are functionally identical to bets on its sports book. But, unlike gambling operations, prediction markets don’t need to seek states’ permission to operate. DraftKings Predictions is available to anyone over 18 years old, anywhere in the U.S. — including the 19 states which don’t allow online sports betting.
Kalshi, the biggest prediction market in the U.S., made money hand over fist on Super Bowl Sunday, too. Users traded:
$500 million on whether the Seattle Seahawks or New England Patriots would win.
$100 million on which song would be played first at the half-time show.
$39 million on which celebrities would attend the game, including more than $23 million on whether Mark Wahlberg would show up.
The amount Americans wagered this weekend illustrates how online betting masquerades as an acceptable — even necessary — part of being a “true” sports fan.
Consider data from GeoComply, a location verification company which studied the number of people who bet online while attending a football game during the 2025-2026 NFL season.
According to the report, as many as one in eight people opened their betting apps at least once while in the stadium — not including those who traded on prediction markets like Kalshi.
Further, GeoComply found some stadiums inspired a statistically significant number of people to sign up to bet online. “Top venues,” the company reports, caused between 0.2% and 0.7% of attendees to open new online betting accounts.
If GeoComply’s data extends to the Super Bowl, a conservative 8,750 people checked their online betting apps at the game on Sunday and at least 140 opened new accounts.
Americans should not consider online sports betting on sports books or prediction markets normal — it’s a dangerous, addictive practice with tangible consequences for all Americans.
Online sports betting compromises the integrity of professional sports, markets to young people and makes most of its money off compulsive gamblers. Last April, the city of Baltimore sued FanDuel and DraftKings for using data analytics to target problem gamblers.
FanDuel and DraftKings make money from users’ losses. Kalshi and other prediction markets claim they do not have the same predatory relationship with their customers because they take a fee from every contract purchased — regardless of whether the user wins or loses.
But Kalshi isn’t just an exchange. It also makes money from its trading arm — a separate company which effectively bets against users by buying opposing contracts. This arrangement makes Kalshi’s business model as predatory as that of online sports books.
The cost of compulsive gambling affects more than finances. Problem gamblers are statistically more likely to experience and perpetrate domestic violence. They are also more likely than those with other addictions to experience suicidal thoughts.
American taxpayers pay for the fall out of problem gambling. Les Bernal, the National Director of Stop Predatory Gambling, tells the Daily Citizen:
Parents can protect their kids from online betting by warning them against predatory gambling, just like they would addictive products like pornography, drugs and alcohol.
With prediction markets like Kalshi making it even easier for kids to bet online, parents should also carefully monitor their children’s internet access.
Additional Articles and Resources
Counseling Consultation & Referrals
Kalshi, Prediction Markets Make It Easy for Kids to Gamble Online
The NBA and MLB Investigate Gambling Corruption While Taking Money from the Gambling Industry
Baltimore Sues FanDuel, DraftKings for Targeting Problem Gamblers
March Madness Sends Gambling Industry Profits Sky High
Online Sports Betting Hooking Young Men on Gambling, Research Suggests
Online Super Bowl Betting Breaks Records
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