Robinhood Jumping Back Into Sports Event Contract Markets

• Robinhood announced today it will once again offer single-game sports event contracts to customers
• The company will offer single-game prediction contracts for all games in the upcoming March Madness tournaments
• Robinhood originally offered Super Bowl contracts, but ceased after a request from the CFTC

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Robinhood is jumping back into the sports event contract market.

The company announced today it will offer a prediction markets hub directly within the Robinhood App to its 25 million customers, which will allow users to trade contracts for a variety of sports events, including every match-up of the men and women’s NCAA basketball tournaments.

It’s a return for the company to the sports event trading space, as it originally offered Super Bowl contracts before pulling the service after a request from the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC).

Back in the Game

The company made the announcement just one day before the “First Four” of the men’s NCAA basketball tournament is scheduled to begin.

“We believe in the power of prediction markets and think they play an important role at the intersection of news, economics, politics, sports, and culture,” said JB Mackenzie, VP & GM of Futures and International at Robinhood. “We’re excited to offer our customers a new way to participate in prediction markets and look forward to doing so in compliance with existing regulations.”

In February, Robinhood announced a partnership with Kalshi to allow its users to purchase event trading contracts on whether the Eagles or Chiefs will win the Super Bowl. The service lasted for less than a day, as the company ceased its services after the CFTC formally requested the company “not permit customers to access” sports event contracts.

The prediction markets hub, and corresponding contracts, will once again be available across the country through a partnership with KalshiEX LLC, a CFTC regulated exchange.

Users can purchase contracts for each of the upcoming NCAA matchups, including the championship, and will receive $1 for every correct contract they own. User can also close their position at any time before the match ends. The company believes it will offer trading hours on the games from 8 a.m. to 3 a.m. every day.

It’s a striking return back to the single-game event contract markets, as Robinhood ceased its services after a notice from the CFTC.

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Super Bowl Trading Lasted All of One Day

Robinhood make a quick entrance into the sports event markets back on Feb. 3, 2025. Robinhood’s partnership with Kalshi only authorized users to deal in NFL championship event contracts between the Eagles and Chiefs. Robinhood is Kalshi’s first broker.

However, trading lasted less than 24 hours. Robinhood ceased trading on Feb. 4, 2025, after the CFTC formally requested the company “not permit customers to access” sports event contracts.

Robinhood expressed disappointment at the CFTC’s request.

“We are disappointed by this outcome, especially given that we had been in regular communication with the CFTC about our intent and plans to offer this product. We’ve also taken steps to advocate for balanced regulation in the futures and derivatives markets, including participating directly in a CFTC roundtable, providing written feedback to the CFTC, and generally championing the economic benefits of event contracts.”