Tom Brady Name-Checked Polymarket On An NFL Broadcast
Roundup: Polymarket token is coming, but after US launch; where exactly can you use Kalshi after its international expansion last week?
Turns out Tom Brady knows what Polymarket is.
The NFL legend and current broadcaster mentioned the prediction market platform during Sunday’s broadcast of the game between the Los Angeles Rams and Baltimore Ravens on Fox.
Here’s the exchange with play-by-play announcer Kevin Burkhardt:
Burkhardt: Derrick Henry has thrown four touchdown passes in his career … I didn’t expect to see two Mark Andrews tush pushes, so why not?
Brady: Check the Polymarket, see what it says.
You can watch and listen to the clip here.
It’s certainly a moment from a number of different perspectives:
The mere notion that Brady knows Polymarket is noteworthy. Does he use it? Or is he just casually aware of it?
The mention was a bit weird in context. As much as Polymarket has grown in mindshare, the number of NFL fans watching the game who know Polymarket is likely pretty small. I’m also pretty sure there wasn’t a market for this!
Casually mentioning betting on an NFL broadcast — especially from a non-league partner — isn’t terribly common. I would have to guess this raised some eyebrows in NFL headquarters.
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Prediction markets news roundup
Polymarket Token Is Coming, But Likely Not This Year: Sources (Decrypt): “Polymarket plans to launch its own native crypto token, but likely not until next year, sources familiar with the matter told Decrypt. The launch of the Polymarket token would follow a $2 billion investment in the prediction markets business from New York Stock Exchange owner Intercontinental Exchange, announced earlier this week, which valued the company at $9 billion. It would also follow the company’s imminent reentry into the U.S. market after being effectively banned by the CFTC in 2022. Polymarket does not plan to launch its token until it has regained a foothold in the U.S. market, currently dominated by competing prediction market Kalshi, sources told Decrypt.”
Where you can and can’t trade on Kalshi: Kalshi is now in 140+ countries, basically overnight after last week’s announcement. Let’s start here… apparently, you can use Kalshi anywhere if you’re an American citizen, no matter what the country says about sports betting. Per a Kalshi statement provided to Sportico’s Dan Bernstein:
“To clarify, references to ‘restricted jurisdictions’ in Kalshi’s Member Agreement relate to citizenship and registered address, not to the physical location from which an already-verified member may access their account while traveling or temporarily located elsewhere. Kalshi Exchange, LLC and Kalshi Klear, LLC complies with all applicable regulations in any jurisdiction in which it is made available, and further adheres to the stringent guidelines set forth for as a registered DCM/DCO with the CFTC. Any statements or assertions made otherwise are false. Please review our membership agreement on our website for further details, located here: https://kalshi.com/docs/kalshi-member-agreement.pdf.”
I placed a bet on an airplane via WiFi while wrapping up this newsletter!
Here’s the list of places where people cannot use Kalshi as citizens of a country, from the company’s member agreement:
Afghanistan, Algeria, Angola, Australia, Belarus, Belgium, Bolivia, Bulgaria, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Canada, Central African Republic, Côte d’Ivoire, Cuba, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ethiopia, France, Haiti, Iran, Iraq, Kenya, Laos, Lebanon, Libya, Mali, Monaco, Mozambique, Myanmar (Burma), Namibia, Nicaragua, Niger, North Korea, Poland, Russia, Singapore, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Syria, Taiwan, Thailand, Ukraine (Crimea, Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia, and Kherson regions), United Kingdom, Venezuela, Yemen, and Zimbabwe, or any jurisdiction or territory that is the subject of comprehensive country-wide, territory-wide, or regional economic sanctions imposed by the United States.
Bernstein also clarified with Kalshi that you can trade in China and India!
Prediction markets weren’t at G2E. Here’s why they dominated gaming industry discussions (The Nevada Independent): “Commonly referred to as G2E, the annual gathering typically centers on the newest casino games showcased on the tradeshow floor inside the Venetian Expo. But not in 2025. Starting with remarks on the main stage’s opening day by American Gaming Association (AGA) CEO Bill Miller to multiple panel discussions, the effect Kalshi and other similar businesses are having on state and tribal-regulated sports betting operations drew the bulk of the G2E audience’s attention.”
“They decide where and when they’ll operate, telling states, tribes and citizens they have no voice in the process,” Miller said of the prediction market’s emergence. “They pay a pittance in taxes and certainly do not generate the $330 billion in economic impact or any of the community benefits we provide. When it comes to helping customers play responsibly, they couldn’t care less.”
My take: To be fair, both Polymarket and Kalshi were around the conference, if not attending officially. I met someone from Polymarket while in Las Vegas, and that company threw a party while in town. Also, while prediction markets were the focus of some folks at the conference, I would imagine the majority of people at the event are still blissfully unaware of prediction markets.
How did the Nobel Prize winner leak?: The people who oversee the Nobel Peace Prize are reportedly investigating how the winner — María Corina Machado — leaked early. Someone traded and profited on Machado winning at prediction markets before the announcement was made.
We still don’t know exactly what happened. But a user who runs a stream on X/Twitter interviewed the alleged trader and speculated on a scenario other than committee members leaking the information or trading on it themselves. Full thread here; TL;DR, it’s at least feasible the person trading found evidence Machado would win on the Nobel Prize website before it happened.
More prediction markets thoughts from Steve Ruddock at Straight to the Point:
