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Underdog is moving deeper into prediction markets after buying two federally regulated exchange entities, a step that will allow the sports gaming company to operate its own U.S. marketplace for event-based contracts.
The New York-based firm said Monday (March 9) it acquired Aristotle Exchange DCM, Inc. and Aristotle Exchange DCO, Inc., both registered with the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission. Together, the licenses create the regulatory framework needed to run a derivatives-style exchange.
One entity holds approval as a Designated Contract Market, meaning it can list and facilitate trading in derivatives contracts. The other is registered as a Derivatives Clearing Organization, which manages the clearing and settlement process that ensures trades are finalized and obligations between parties are met.
By bringing those capabilities under its own umbrella, Underdog plans to build a federally compliant prediction market platform where users can trade contracts tied to sports outcomes and other real-world events.
Underdog expands into prediction markets via regulated Aristotle exchange
Underdog launched in 2020 and quickly gained traction in the U.S. sports gaming industry through fantasy sports contests, media content, and newer prediction-style products. Last September, the company began offering access to sports prediction markets inside its mobile app, but the system worked as a gateway that routed users to outside exchanges rather than running the marketplace itself.
The newly acquired licenses open the door for Underdog to operate its own exchange infrastructure. Instead of relying on third parties, the company would be able to list contracts directly and clear transactions through its own regulated entities.
Jeremy Levine, CEO and co-founder of Underdog, said the company plans to work closely with regulators as the exchange takes shape.
"We look forward to working with the CFTC to offer an exchange that brings even more options to enjoy sports to our customers," Levine said.
He added that the firm sees prediction markets as a growing way for fans to engage with sports beyond traditional betting or fantasy contests.
"We're in the early innings of what prediction markets can be, especially for sports fans," Levine said. "We'll use this opportunity to bring the same relentless focus on innovation and experience that we've always brought to our customers. The reality is, prediction markets are primarily about sports and no company knows how to engage with sports fans and create products for sports fans better than Underdog."
Prediction markets allow people to buy and sell contracts linked to the outcome of real-world events. Prices move as traders signal their expectations about whether something will happen. When structured as regulated derivatives contracts, the markets fall under federal commodities oversight rather than traditional sports betting rules.
Underdog has already been expanding its presence in the space. The company recently partnered with Crypto.com to support access to sports-related prediction markets in multiple U.S. states through its app.
At the same time, the company has been criticized for reshaping its operations as it grows. Underdog recently cut a portion of its workforce as it refocused resources on key areas including regulated products and long-term platform development.
Financial terms of the Aristotle acquisition were not disclosed.
Featured image: Underdog
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Women still account for a relatively small portion of Spain's online gambling market, yet their numbers are climbing quickly. New figures from Spain's Directorate General for Gambling Regulation show that women represented 16.9% of online gamblers in 2024. Even with that imbalance, regulators say the pace of growth suggests a noticeable generational change in a sector that has long been dominated by men.
Authorities recorded 1.99 million active online gamblers across licensed platforms last year. Among them were 335,627 women. While it remains a minority share, the government analysis notes that female participation has been trending upward for several years and accelerated sharply between 2023 and 2024.
Age data from the report highlights how strongly younger adults are shaping the trend. Nearly 60% of female online gamblers in Spain are under 35, giving the group a distinctly younger profile than the broader gambling population.
The fastest expansion is happening among the youngest players entering the market. The group of women grew by more than 30% year over year. Researchers say the pattern reflects broader changes in gambling behavior as mobile apps and digital platforms make betting easier to access and increasingly woven into everyday online activity.
Even with their growing presence, women generally spend less than the average gambler. Female players deposited a combined €608 million ($703 million) into online gambling accounts during 2024. The amount represented roughly 13.3% of all deposits made in Spain's regulated online market.
On an individual level, women deposited an average of €2,019 ($2,336) during the year, compared with €2,482 ($2,871) across the overall gambling population. Even so, the total amount deposited by women has surged over time. The figure has climbed 117% during the past five years, outpacing the growth rate of total deposits across the market.
Spending behavior varies by product as well. Sports betting and online casino games account for the majority of female gambling activity in Spain, while poker and bingo attract far fewer players.
The report shows a median annual loss of between €10 and €30 ($12 to $35), indicating that many players spend relatively small amounts. The average loss, however, rises to €539 ($624) per year, suggesting that a small group of higher spending users accounts for a large share of total losses.
Among the highest spending five percent of female gamblers, losses reached about €3,583 ($4,144) annually in 2023. The figure dipped slightly to €3,458 ($3,999) in 2024 as the number of new players entering the market increased.
Even as female participation grows, gambling remains a heavily male skewed industry. Industry analysis has long shown that men are more likely to gamble and tend to spend more, especially in activities such as sports betting and poker. The betting world's male dominance also extends beyond players to marketing, leadership, and industry culture, shaping how gambling products are designed and promoted.
At the same time, some regions are seeing signs that gambling related harm among women may also be increasing. In Northern Ireland, referrals for problem gambling support doubled last year, with a noticeable rise in women seeking help. The figures were presented in a briefing to the All Party Group on Reducing Harm Related to Gambling.
The Spanish study also flagged an unusual trend involving identity theft linked to gambling accounts. Women accounted for 46.14% of reported identity fraud cases handled through Spain's official protocol for victims of gambling related identity misuse, despite representing a much smaller share of overall players.
Taken together, regulators say younger women are entering the online gambling market at a faster pace.
Featured image: Grok
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Regulators in New South Wales are starting to pay closer attention to a fast-growing part of the gambling industry aka social media influencers and online content creators.
Liquor & Gaming NSW says companies that run betting services or gaming machines should expect far more scrutiny over how their products appear on social platforms. Monitoring influencer-driven promotions will be one of the regulator's central enforcement priorities throughout 2026.
The agency is responsible for policing advertising connected to online wagering and gaming machines that can be viewed by people in the state, including posts shared across major social platforms. Officials say the surge in influencer partnerships means gambling companies need to think carefully about how their brands appear in online content.
Hospitality and Racing Deputy Secretary Tarek Barakat said operators should take a hard look at the way influencer marketing arrangements are set up and managed.
"We are putting gambling operators on notice that a key priority for us this year is examining their marketing and customer retention practices, including the use of social media personalities," Barakat said.
He warned companies that they remain responsible for the way their products are promoted, even if the advertising is carried out by third parties.
"Gambling operators should be careful about any affiliate or partnership arrangements as we are holding them responsible for the advertising of their products.
"The things we are targeting include paid and unpaid promotional partnerships with wagering operators and gaming machine operators, influencer content that normalises betting behaviour or glamorises gaming products, and in particular, the use of platforms, including podcasts, with large youth or vulnerable audiences.
"These practices may increase the risk of gambling harm by blurring the line between entertainment and marketing, and by exposing at-risk groups to persuasive promotional content.
"L&GNSW will require social media content creators to demonstrate that their social media and website content complies with legal requirements.
"We also work with other responsible agencies as required to ensure people abide by the law and gambling harm is minimised."
NSW shifts focus to gambling influencer marketing
Liquor & Gaming NSW said its yearly list of regulatory priorities is meant to signal where enforcement attention will fall and give businesses time to adjust before penalties follow.
Influencer promotions are only one part of the review planned for 2026. Regulators also intend to examine whether gambling companies make it unnecessarily difficult for customers to close betting accounts. VIP and loyalty programs, along with marketing tactics used by casinos and gaming venues, will also be reviewed. Authorities say they will continue monitoring casino governance and alcohol-related harm in areas experiencing high levels of alcohol-related crime or large public events.
Australia's national communications regulator has already issued similar warnings. The Australian Communications and Media Authority recently cautioned influencers that promoting illegal offshore gambling services to Australians can expose them to significant civil penalties. Creators have been urged to check whether betting operators are licensed locally before sharing promotional content.
Influencers, take note: Promoting illegal online casinos in Australia is against the law. The ACMA is monitoring this activity closely.
— ACMA (@acmadotgov) June 24, 2025No giveaways, no streaming, no links.
Penalties up to $59,400 await those who break the rules.
Learn more: https://t.co/7EhLlHV0bG pic.twitter.com/RIPNRacEnT
State legislation already places strict limits on gambling advertising. The Betting & Racing Act 1998 bans inducements to gamble and prohibits advertising that is false, misleading, or deceptive. Promotions are also illegal if they suggest winning is guaranteed or imply gambling will improve a person's finances.
Penalties can be significant. Individuals who break the rules can face fines of up to $11,000, while companies can be fined up to $110,000.Another law, the Gaming Machines Act 2001, prohibits advertising that draws attention to poker machines in pubs and clubs. Regulators say influencers who record themselves gambling at venues and upload those videos online could also breach the law and face fines of up to $11,000.
Featured image: Canva
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Australia's communications regulator has moved against six licensed wagering companies after investigations found they failed to follow safeguards meant to protect people who chose to stop gambling.
The Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) said the cases centered on BetStop, the National Self-Exclusion Register that allows Australians to block themselves from online and telephone betting services. Once someone signs up, licensed operators are required to prevent them from opening accounts, placing bets, or receiving gambling promotions.
Regulators wrapped up six separate investigations covering Tabcorp, LightningBet, Betfocus, TempleBet, Picklebet and BetChamps. While each inquiry examined different incidents, the underlying problem showed that the company systems and internal controls failed to properly recognize and block customers who had already registered for self-exclusion.
During 2024, several operators allowed people on the BetStop register to open new wagering accounts or continue using existing betting services. In other instances, customers who had taken steps to cut themselves off from gambling were still sent marketing messages promoting betting products.
ACMA says betting firms' failures undermine BetStop national self-exclusion system
ACMA member Carolyn Lidgerwood said the investigations showed how easily a harm-reduction tool can break down if operators fail to follow the rules.
"The national self-exclusion register is designed to help people who are trying to avoid gambling services and stop gambling, but self-exclusion only works if wagering providers follow the rules," Lidgerwood said.
"These rules have been in place for more than two years and wagering providers should be taking their responsibilities seriously.
"When people decide to self-exclude from online and telephone gambling, they trust the system to protect them from gambling harm. These investigations have found that these companies broke that trust and let people down."
According to the authority, the reviews uncovered gaps in the companies' technical systems and compliance processes. In several cases, operators did not properly identify customers listed on the BetStop register, allowing those individuals to access gambling services when they should have been automatically blocked.
The regulator responded with a mix of enforcement measures under the Interactive Gambling Act 2001.
Tabcorp received the largest financial penalty, paying A$112,680 and entering into a court-enforceable undertaking. The agreement requires the company to arrange an independent review of how it verifies customers and to strengthen staff training around obligations tied to the BetStop register.
The penalty adds to earlier regulatory scrutiny of Tabcorp. In a separate case reported previously, the company was fined A$158,400 by ACMA over breaches involving illegal in-play sports betting offered during live matches.
Other companies faced different corrective actions. Betfocus, LightningBet and TempleBet were issued remedial directions requiring them to commission independent system audits and carry out any recommended fixes. Failure to comply could trigger stronger penalties.
BetChamps received a formal warning, while enforcement action against Picklebet is still being finalized.
Lidgerwood said the cases should send a clear message to the gambling sector that compliance with the national self-exclusion system is under close scrutiny.
"All licensed wagering providers need to be aware that the ACMA is investigating compliance and enforcing the rules," she said. "Gambling companies must have effective systems in place to ensure self-excluded people cannot gamble with them."
The authority also warned that future violations could escalate to Federal Court action seeking significant civil penalties.
Featured image: ACMA via press release
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A federal judge has thrown out, at least for now, a lawsuit filed by the Morongo Band of Mission Indians that challenged several provisions in its gaming agreement with California. In a March 4 order, U.S. District Judge Sunshine S. Sykes ruled the tribe had not shown a real and active legal dispute with the state or Gov. Gavin Newsom. Without that kind of immediate conflict, the court said, the case cannot move forward.
The ruling dismisses the lawsuit but gives the tribe the opportunity to amend its complaint and try again. Morongo first filed the case in May 2025, targeting multiple provisions in a tribal-state gaming compact that took effect in January 2018.
The tribe argued that several parts of the agreement violate the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act, or IGRA, because they regulate issues that do not directly relate to the operation of Class III gaming. That category includes slot machines and casino-style table games offered at tribal casinos.
Morongo's complaint laid out 17 separate claims, each focused on a specific provision in the compact. According to the tribe, those sections exceed what federal law allows states to include when negotiating gaming agreements with tribes.
Why the court said the Morongo tribe California gaming compact dispute was not ripe
Before reaching the substance of those arguments, the court examined whether the dispute met the constitutional requirement for a real and immediate controversy. Federal courts cannot issue advisory opinions, so a claim must involve a concrete conflict that already exists or is about to occur.
Based on the allegations and representations made by Morongo, it is unclear to the Court why any future disputes arising from an employee's status could not be resolved between the parties or how any future disagreements would injure Morongo.
U.S. District Judge Sunshine S. Sykes opinion
Judge Sykes concluded that Morongo had not demonstrated that type of conflict. In part, the court pointed to the state's position that it does not plan to enforce several of the provisions the tribe challenged.
Court filings cited in the order show California disavowed enforcement of sections involving environmental review requirements, child and spousal support obligations, and portions of the compact's definitions and tort provisions. Because the state said it would not enforce those provisions, the judge found there was no "definite and concrete" dispute for the court to resolve.
For the other provisions, the judge said the tribe's arguments depended on hypothetical future situations rather than an existing legal clash. The order noted that Morongo has not breached the compact and has not faced any enforcement action from the state.
The court also rejected the tribe's comparison to a U.S. Supreme Court case involving a company that sought a declaratory judgment after being threatened with patent enforcement. Unlike that situation, the judge wrote, California has taken no comparable enforcement step against Morongo.
Instead, the record showed ongoing communication between the parties. Letters exchanged by the state and the tribe emphasized attempts to work through disagreements cooperatively.
California's tribal gaming framework relies on negotiated compacts approved by the U.S. Department of the Interior and published in the Federal Register, including Class III tribal-state gaming agreements confirmed in a 2024 notice. The compacts form the legal foundation for casino-style gambling on tribal land throughout the state.
The dispute also emerges during a period of legal friction across California's gambling industry. Tribes have recently faced setbacks in efforts to challenge cardroom operators in court, while debates over blackjack-style games and other offerings have triggered political clashes and warnings that restrictions could threaten local jobs and tax revenue tied to cardroom operations.
For now, Judge Sykes dismissed Morongo's complaint but left the door open. The tribe would need to file a revised lawsuit by March 20, 2026, that identifies injuries that are actual or imminent and clearly tied to the state's conduct.
ReadWrite has reached out to the Morongo Band of Mission Indians for comment.
Featured image: Morongo Band of Mission Indians via Facebook
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