Vardan Khachatryan
Kalshi in Ohio
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 Ohio
- 4 on record, listed in the timeline
- Proposed fine
- $5 million, not yet final
- Appeals court ruling
- Against Kalshi, September 25, 2026; rehearing sought October 9
- Federal appeals court
- Sixth Circuit: ruled against Kalshi on September 25, 2026
- Last change
- October 9, 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 is legal in Ohio, for now
Kalshi is a federally regulated exchange. The CFTC designated it a contract market in 2020, the status futures exchanges hold.
That covers its markets on elections, the economy and the weather. Ohio has not challenged those.
Sports are the fight. Ohio says a contract on a Browns game is sports gaming, and sports gaming needs a state license.
Kalshi asked federal courts to stop Ohio enforcing that view. It lost in March, and it lost again on appeal on September 25. On October 9, it asked the full appeals court to rehear the case.
So why does it still trade here? No court has ordered it out, and Ohio's fine is not final. That can change quickly.
What you can trade on Kalshi from Ohio
Everything Kalshi lists: sports, politics, economics, crypto, culture and weather. You must be 18 or over and pass its ID checks.
Sports are the big draw. Browns, Bengals, Guardians, Reds, Cavaliers and Buckeyes markets all trade, for now.
Politics is busy too. Ohio elects a governor and a US senator on November 3, 2026.
Vivek Ramaswamy faces Amy Acton for governor: see the live Ohio governor odds. Jon Husted faces Sherrod Brown in the Ohio Senate race.
Sports are the part at risk. If Ohio acts, those markets could close to Ohio traders with little notice.
How Kalshi works for Ohio 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 Browns are 60¢ to win on Sunday. You buy 100 contracts for $60. Kalshi's standard fee on that trade is $1.68.
If the Browns win, you collect $100, a $38.32 profit. If they lose, you are out $61.68.
You trade against other people, not the house. The fee is highest near 50¢ and shrinks toward either end. Our Kalshi fees guide has the schedule.
What Ohio has said about Kalshi
Ohio's Casino Control Commission moved early. In spring 2025, it ordered three prediction market operators, Kalshi among them, to stop offering sports contracts.
Its order was specific. Kalshi was selling contracts on sports “to citizens located within the State of Ohio, without a sports gaming license.”
It called taking trades from people under 21 “a flagrant disregard of Ohio's statutory gambling age limit.”
In August 2025, it warned its own sportsbook licensees too. Working with such a platform could cost them their Ohio licenses.
Dave Yost, then Ohio's attorney general, said in April he “wouldn't bet” on Kalshi's long-term future in Ohio.
On October 2, the commission sent cease-and-desist letters to 10 other firms over sports contracts. Kalshi was not among them. Attorney General Andy Wilson has said the apps must comply “or we're gonna force them into compliance.”
Kalshi's lawsuit against Ohio, explained
Kalshi sued in October 2025. The case is KalshiEX LLC v. Schuler, No. 2:25-cv-01165, in federal court in Columbus.
It named the commission, its members, Executive Director Matthew Schuler and Yost. Kalshi said federal law leaves Ohio's gambling laws no role.
Judge Sarah D. Morrison disagreed. On March 9, 2026, she denied Kalshi a preliminary injunction.
On April 14, the commission proposed a $5 million fine. It said Kalshi ignored its cease-and-desist order and pays no Ohio sports gaming tax.
Ten days later, a Sixth Circuit panel refused to pause Ohio's law during the appeal. It found the merits, at best for Kalshi, evenly balanced.
On September 25, 2026, the merits panel ruled. Judge Julia Smith Gibbons wrote for all three judges.
Kalshi's sports contracts are not swaps, the court held, so the CFTC's exclusive control does not reach them. Even if they were, Ohio's law would still apply.
Kalshi argued it could not block Ohio users. The court disagreed: “expensive does not mean impossible,” it wrote.
It is “the states, rather than the federal government, that are best suited to regulate sports betting,” it added. Kalshi disagrees and doubts the ruling will survive further review.
On October 9, Kalshi asked the full Sixth Circuit to rehear the case. It argues the ruling conflicts with other appellate decisions, and that the CFTC's October 9 rules warrant rehearing.
What could change Kalshi's status in Ohio
Three things could. The first is the commission. Its $5 million fine is still only a proposal, and Kalshi could ask for a hearing.
Nothing stops Ohio from enforcing its law in other ways, either. We found no new action against Kalshi as of October 19.
The second is the full Sixth Circuit. Kalshi asked it to rehear the case on October 9, as it has in the Ninth.
The third is the Supreme Court. New Jersey has asked it to settle the question, and Kalshi's response is due November 9. Ohio led 38 other states and DC in backing that request on October 7. On October 9, 2026, the CFTC proposed a rule defining event contracts, sports included, as swaps.
Lawmakers are moving as well. Senate Bill 430 would count trading sports event contracts as sports wagering. Our litigation tracker follows each case.
Kalshi in Ohio: timeline
Every change to Kalshi's position in Ohio, newest first. Each entry links the ruling or report behind it.
How Kalshi compares to sports betting in Ohio
Sports betting is legal in Ohio. Lawmakers approved it in December 2021, and online and in-person betting launched on January 1, 2023.
It is a big market. Ohio's sportsbooks earned $1.04 billion in 2025, one of four states above $1 billion.
They pay a 20% state tax, and 2% of it funds problem-gambling programs. They must also turn away anyone under 21.
Kalshi does neither, and that is Ohio's complaint. The product differs too: a sportsbook sets odds, while Kalshi matches you with another trader.
Other prediction market apps in Ohio
The ruling reaches further than Kalshi. Its reasoning applies to any sports contract on a federal exchange, whoever sells it.
Brokers such as Robinhood, Coinbase and Webull sell Kalshi's contracts, so an Ohio block on Kalshi would reach them. Ohio has also sent all three their own cease-and-desist letters. DraftKings and FanDuel run sportsbooks here, so their prediction apps skip sports.
Here is where each app we rank stands. For the full picture, see prediction markets in Ohio.
| App | Status in Ohio | More |
|---|---|---|
| Gemini Predictions | Available, sports included | Gemini Predictions review |
| Polymarket US | Contested for sports contracts, with no restriction in force | Polymarket review |
| OG | Available, but not for sports contracts | 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, sports included | 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 Ohio
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 carry no Kalshi fee.
Think twice before a long-dated sports position in Ohio. If the state acts, those markets could close before your event settles.
Before you fund it, read our Kalshi review for its fees, payouts and lawsuits. New to all this? Start with what prediction markets are.