Claim: The NCAA urged Congress and the CFTC to suspend college sports prediction markets and impose a 21+ age limit, citing harassment of athletes over prop bets.

Prediction markets have become an increasingly prominent part of modern sports, with Kalshi and Polymarket emerging as two of the biggest players in the space. Their reach now extends across major sporting events, from the month-long World Cup to NCAA college athletics. In fact, Kalshi told CNBC on Tuesday that they added 3 million new users during the World Cup.

However, the growing influence of prediction markets has also drawn scrutiny at both federal and state levels due to the ethical predicament involving insider trading. While the pushback continues, USA Today recently reported that the NCAA voiced its opposition to sports prediction markets in Congressional testimony via a written letter on Tuesday, July 21. 

But is that really the case? Here’s what we found! 

Our Verdict: Unsubstantiated

Although NCAA President Charlie Baker penned an Email to CFTC Chairman Michael S. Selig, it was back on January 14, 2026. We reached out to the author of the USA Today report, Mr. John Brice, to confirm whether the letter was presented during July 21’s hearing. However, Brice didn’t respond to multiple attempts to contact him. 

As for what happened during Congress, members of the House Subcommittee on Markets, Digital Assets, and Rural Development heard competing expert testimony on Tuesday, July 21, on Capitol Hill in the Longworth House Office Building, focusing on the rapidly growing market for sports prediction contracts. The NCAA wasn’t part of the five-person group of witnesses. 

However, their written testimony slammed the “growth and haphazard nature of collegiate sport prediction markets [that] pose a significant threat” to student-athletes as well as the integrity of the competition. USA Today claimed the NCAA was requested to provide formal comments to the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC). 

So, they reiterated their desire for the CFTC to “suspend collegiate sport prediction markets until a more robust system with appropriate safeguards is in place.” The governing body for college sports wanted the commodities regulator to make it mandatory for the markets to have a 21-and-over regulation in the space. 

They were also concerned about predictive marketing options centered around individual or multi-player performances. Moreover, the national collegiate sports organization wanted several considerations, which include:

• Consultation with national governing bodies before approval of college sports prediction offerings. 
• Dedicated funds for financial literacy.
• Gambling education programs. 
• Protection for student-athletes via preventative harassment measures from angry bettors or “market participants.”
• Measures providing geolocation data to oversight entities (CFTC and/or the NCAA).
• Mandatory monitoring and reporting of suspicious activities to oversight bodies (CFTC or NCAA). 
• Guidelines to address the potential confluence of predictive market companies from entering the collegiate Name, Image and Likeness space.
• They also wanted restrictive advertising measures on college and university grounds.

Meanwhile, the panel of witnesses included the following: 

• Mr. Robert A. Schwartz, Partner, Morgan, Lewis & Bockius, Washington, DC.
• Mr. David Z. Bean, Chairman, Indian Gaming Association, Puyallup Tribe, Tacoma, WA.
• Mr. Christopher Cylke, Senior Vice President, Government Relations, American Gaming Association, Washington, DC.
• Mr. Carl Kennedy, Partner, Co-Chair, Financial Markets and Regulation Practice, Katten Muchin Rosenman LLP, New York, NY.
• Mr. Asaf Meir, Founder & Chief Executive Officer, Solidus Labs, New York, NY.

Our fact-checking sources:

• USA Today, July 21, 2026. NCAA opposing sports predictive gambling markets in Congressional testimony
• House Committee on Agriculture, July 21, 2026. Examining Customer Protections and Market Integrity in Sports Event Prediction Markets
• CNBC, July 19, 2026. Kalshi adds 3 million new users as prediction market capitalizes on the World Cup
• Charlie Baker’s email to CFTC, January 14, 2026. The email