MLB’s gambling deal with Polymarket heightens the risk of minors being drawn into sports gambling.
On March 19, MLB announced a partnership with the online betting platform. The company is a federally certified prediction market that facilitates yes/no-style sports betting. It advertises its product as available for users 18+.
Earlier this week, an Argentinian court ordered Google and Apple to block Polymarket nationwide after finding that it lacked age verification. The court determined that children could access Polymarket.
Polymarket has launched a US-facing platform, but its rollout remains more limited than its offshore platform.
The Polymarket deal deepens MLB’s connection to online gambling precisely when sports betting harm is surging, and US public opinion about betting is deteriorating.
What is Polymarket?
It’s essentially gambling on sports through a stock market mechanism. Users buy and sell shares in a sports outcome, such as who will win the game or if a batter will hit a home run.
No state has licensed Polymarket for sports gambling.
Alarmingly, almost all states with legal sports betting have set their minimum gambling age at 21, raising serious concern for underage access on Polymarket.
What’s in the MLB-Polymarket Deal
Polymarket will have exclusive access to MLB marks and logos for use in its prediction market product. The same goes for Polymarket’s brokers.
Polymarket will also get access to official MLB data to power in-game gambling and player props.
The gambling site will also receive brand exposure across MLB’s digital ecosystem and at league events. To date, Polymarket has not signed a deal with an MLB franchise.
Polymarket joins DraftKings, FanDuel, and BetMGM as an official MLB partner. Other sportsbooks, such as Bet365, have deals with MLB franchises.
Gambling Addiction Risks
Sports gambling through any mobile application carries a significant risk of addiction. Developers build these products to encourage habitual use with no natural stopping points.
Surveys show that more than half of online sports bettors chase their losses.
Polymarket has been sued in federal court over its platform features. A class-action lawsuit said the platform highlights potential winnings in a visually prominent way while downplaying costs and addiction risks.
The lawsuit also says Polymarket lacks safeguards such as self-exclusion for users with addiction, increasing risks for those vulnerable to compulsive gambling, including minors.
Numerous states are aggressively challenging the legality of prediction markets such as Kalshi and Polymarket.
ESPN reported that the MLB-Polymarket deal includes language that would immediately void the partnership if courts ruled that prediction markets violate state law.
Image by Sue Park from Pixabay
