Michigan judge blocks Kalshi sports bets for residents
A Michigan judge has temporarily blocked Kalshi from letting residents place sports bets, issuing a 14-day restraining order after the state attorney general accused the prediction market of breaking gambling laws. The ruling escalates the state-federal fight over who regulates event contracts.
Key Takeaways
- Ingham County Circuit Court Judge Rosemarie Aquilina barred Kalshi from offering sports betting contracts to Michigan residents.
- Kalshi faces a $120,000 daily fine if it fails to meet the order's geolocation requirements; the injunction runs through July 13.
- Michigan is the second U.S. state with a court-ordered ban on Kalshi sports event contracts, after Nevada in March.
- The CFTC has sued several states, arguing federally regulated event contracts fall under its exclusive authority.
- Sports betting volume on prediction markets has surged during the 2026 FIFA World Cup, intensifying regulatory pressure.
Why did a Michigan judge block Kalshi?
A Michigan judge temporarily blocked prediction market Kalshi from allowing residents to place bets on sporting events. The state's attorney general accused the platform of violating gambling laws, according to Cointelegraph.
Kalshi was hit with a temporary restraining order from Ingham County Circuit Court Judge Rosemarie Aquilina. Aquilina wrote that Michigan residents would suffer irreparable harm from being exploited by Kalshi's sports betting operation masquerading as an investment opportunity.
What penalties does the order impose?
The restraining order lasts 14 days and expires on July 13. Aquilina said Kalshi would be fined $120,000 for each day it fails to comply with the order's geolocation requirements, according to a Monday court filing.
Cointelegraph has approached Kalshi for comment on how the platform will respond to the verdict.
How does Michigan fit the wider regulatory fight?
The Michigan ruling adds to growing regulatory scrutiny on prediction market sports betting. It makes Michigan the second U.S. state to enact a court-ordered ban on Kalshi's sports event contracts, after Nevada issued a temporary ban earlier in March.
On June 17, Kentucky sued five prediction market platforms, including Kalshi and Polymarket, accusing them of operating unlicensed sports betting platforms. More than a dozen other states have taken prediction market operators to court.
The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission has sued several states, arguing that federally regulated event contracts fall under its exclusive authority. That clash sits at the center of the escalating state-federal fight over prediction markets and gambling laws. For more coverage, see our Fintech & Crypto Alerts section.
Why is sports betting volume surging on prediction markets?
Sports betting activity has been rising on prediction markets since the beginning of the FIFA World Cup. Daily taker volume reached a record $713 million on June 20, according to Dune data, more than a week after the World Cup started on June 11.
Looking at monthly prediction market volume, sports betting was the leading category on the two largest platforms. It rose 40% to $9.5 billion on Kalshi and 175% to $5.3 billion on Polymarket, Defirate data shows.
A June 11 Bernstein report predicted that the 2026 FIFA World Cup would generate more than $3 billion in incremental sports betting handle and between $5 billion and $10 billion in additional consumer prediction market volume. The World Cup winner contract alone has generated over $3.5 billion in trading volume on Polymarket.