Legacy sportsbooks are chasing prediction markets that already trade billions each month
DraftKings said its Predictions product is growing quickly: May 2026 annualized consumer volume rose 24% month over month to $1.3 billion, and annualized total volume hit $3.1 billion, sending shares up about 10%. But that still translates to only about $258 million of actual May trading, far below Kalshi’s $17.9 billion in May and below Polymarket’s $7.08 billion. Prediction markets are event contracts that function like financial exchanges and are now dominated by sports-driven volume. DraftKings is entering a category already scaled by native platforms, but it brings a large sportsbook customer base and launched in 38 states under a federal derivatives framework. The big uncertainty is legal: courts are split over whether sports prediction contracts are federally regulated derivatives or illegal gambling, and that ruling will shape whether DraftKings can catch up.
