Vardan Khachatryan
Kalshi in Connecticut
Contested for sports contracts, with no restriction in force.
- Sports contracts
- Available, but contested
- Other contracts
- Available
- Regulator
- CFTC: a designated contract market (DCM) and derivatives clearing organization
- Rulings and actions in Connecticut
- 3 on record, listed in the timeline
- Legal sports betting
- Since 2021, through three licensed apps, 21 and over
- Kalshi users in Connecticut
- More than 24,000, Kalshi told the court
- Federal appeals court
- Second Circuit: has not ruled on the question
- Last change
- September 8, 2026
Each entry on this page links the ruling or report it rests on. Nothing here is legal advice.
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Why Kalshi's status in Connecticut is contested
Kalshi is a federally regulated exchange. The CFTC designated it a contract market in 2020, so its regulator sits in Washington, not Hartford.
Connecticut says that does not cover sports. Its Department of Consumer Protection treats Kalshi's sports contracts as unlicensed sports wagering.
The fight is about sports alone. The state's lawyers told the court their order covers sports contracts only.
For now, nothing stops you from trading. No court has ordered Kalshi out of Connecticut, and Kalshi has not switched the state off.
That could change. Here is where each case stands.
What you can trade on Kalshi from Connecticut
Everything Kalshi lists: sports, politics, economics, crypto, culture and weather. You must be 18 or over and pass its ID checks.
That age is one of the state's complaints. Connecticut's licensed sportsbooks may only take bets from people 21 and over.
Sports is where the risk sits. Kalshi lists NFL, NBA, MLB and college games, down to point spreads and player stats.
College contracts are a sore point here. Connecticut bars its sportsbooks from taking bets on UConn and other in-state college teams, outside tournaments.
The state says Kalshi's contracts on those teams break that rule.
Kalshi has not geofenced Connecticut. It told the court that geofencing one state “effectively means geofencing everywhere.”
How Kalshi works for Connecticut traders
Every Kalshi contract is a yes-or-no question. It pays $1 if the answer is yes and nothing if it is no.
The price is the market's odds. A contract at 60¢ means traders put the chance at about 60%.
Say the Patriots are 60¢ to win on Sunday. You buy 100 contracts for $60. Kalshi's standard fee on that trade is $1.68.
If the Patriots win, you collect $100, a $38.32 profit. If they lose, you are out $61.68.
You trade against other people, not the house. Kalshi earns its fee either way, so it has no stake in who wins.
The fee is highest near 50¢ and shrinks toward either end. Our Kalshi fees guide has the full schedule.
What Connecticut has said about Kalshi
On December 2, 2025, Connecticut's Gaming Division ordered Kalshi to stop offering sports contracts to residents.
The letter called them unlicensed sports wagering. It said Kalshi takes traders under 21 and allows bets on Connecticut college teams.
It also ordered Kalshi to let residents withdraw their money.
“Only licensed entities may offer sports wagering in the state of Connecticut,” said Consumer Protection Commissioner Bryan T. Cafferelli.
Attorney General William Tong went further on August 26, 2026, when the state sued. “Sports event contracts are no different than sports betting,” he said.
Kalshi's head of litigation complained the state was “okay with other prediction markets operating there in the meantime.”
Two weeks later, that changed. On September 10, 2026, the governor announced orders against nine rival apps, from Polymarket to Robinhood.
Kalshi's court fight with Connecticut, explained
Kalshi sued the day the order was announced. Its case, KalshiEX LLC v. Cafferelli, No. 3:25-cv-02016, argues federal law preempts Connecticut's gaming laws.
By agreement, the state held off enforcing while the judge weighed an injunction. That truce began on December 8, 2025.
It ended on August 10, 2026. Judge Vernon D. Oliver denied Kalshi's motion for a preliminary injunction.
He concluded that Kalshi's sports contracts are not swaps under federal law. So federal law does not preempt Connecticut's rules on them.
“Kalshi itself has touted its platform as offering legal sports betting nationwide,” he wrote.
Kalshi appealed the same day. On August 15, the judge refused to pause enforcement while the appeal runs.
The Second Circuit has not ruled. On August 19, one judge denied temporary relief and sent the request to a three-judge panel.
That panel will hear Kalshi's New York and Connecticut appeals in tandem with Coinbase's Connecticut appeal. Kalshi's opening brief is due September 30.
The state has its own case too. It sued in Hartford Superior Court on August 26, and Kalshi moved it to federal court that day.
Connecticut asked on September 8 to send it back to Hartford. Kalshi's response is due September 29.
What could change Kalshi's status in Connecticut
Four things could. The first is the state's own lawsuit, which asks for an injunction against Kalshi's sports contracts.
Other states have won exactly that. Courts in Massachusetts, Nevada and Michigan ordered Kalshi to geofence their states. The Massachusetts order is on hold during an appeal.
The second is the Second Circuit, which covers Connecticut, New York and Vermont. Judge Oliver called the question one “of first impression” there.
The third is the CFTC's own suit against Connecticut, No. 3:26-cv-00498. It asked for a preliminary injunction on September 11, 2026.
The fourth is the Supreme Court. The circuits are split: the Third sided with Kalshi in April, the Ninth and Sixth against it.
New Jersey has asked the Supreme Court to decide. Our litigation tracker follows each case.
Kalshi in Connecticut: timeline
Every change to Kalshi's position in Connecticut, newest first. Each entry links the ruling or filing behind it.
How Kalshi compares to sports betting in Connecticut
Connecticut legalized sports betting in 2021. Governor Ned Lamont signed Public Act 21-23 on May 27, and online betting opened on October 19.
Three licensed apps serve the market: DraftKings with Foxwoods, FanDuel with Mohegan Sun, and Fanatics with the Connecticut Lottery.
The two tribes behind those casinos, the Mashantucket Pequot and the Mohegan, hold two of the three online licenses.
The state taxes sportsbook revenue at 13.75%. Bettors must be 21 and physically in Connecticut.
Kalshi fits none of that. It holds no state license, and it accepts traders from 18.
The tribes see a threat. In a May 26, 2026 filing, they warned the CFTC could become “the exclusive regulator of sports betting.”
Other prediction market apps in Connecticut
Kalshi is not alone. In September 2026, Connecticut ordered nine more apps to stop sports contracts, from Polymarket to Gemini.
DraftKings and FanDuel run licensed sportsbooks here, so their prediction apps offer no sports contracts.
Here is where each app we rank stands in the state. See whether Polymarket is legal in Connecticut and prediction markets in Connecticut for the full picture.
| App | Status in Connecticut | More |
|---|---|---|
| Gemini Predictions | Available, sports included | Gemini Predictions review |
| Polymarket US | Contested for sports contracts, with no restriction in force | Is Polymarket legal in Connecticut? |
| OG | Available, sports included | OG review |
| Interactive Brokers | Available; it lists no sports contracts anywhere | Interactive Brokers review |
| Robinhood | Contested for sports contracts, with no restriction in force | Robinhood review |
| ProphetX | Available, sports included | ProphetX review |
| Coinbase | Available, sports included | Coinbase review |
| Webull | Available, but not for sports contracts | Webull review |
| Novig | Available, sports included | Novig review |
| DraftKings Predictions | Available, but not for sports contracts | DraftKings Predictions review |
| Fanatics Markets | Not available | Fanatics Markets review |
| FanDuel Predicts | Available, but not for sports contracts | FanDuel Predicts review |
| PrizePicks | Available, but not for sports contracts | PrizePicks review |
| Underdog Predict | Available, sports included | Underdog Predict review |
How to use Kalshi in Connecticut
Sign up with your email, confirm your identity with a driver's license or passport, and fund the account.
Kalshi takes bank transfers, debit cards, Apple Pay, PayPal, Venmo, wires and crypto, among others.
Withdrawals go back to your bank or card. There is nothing extra to do in Connecticut.
Before you fund it, read our Kalshi review for its fees, payouts and the lawsuits against it. New to all this? Start with what prediction markets are.