Kalshi is by far the most loathsome of the sports betting apps; DraftKings and FanDuel are also pure evil, but they at least work with state regulators and follow state-by-state laws. Kalshi on the other hand is a sportsbook with Trump Jr on its board that ignores state laws on gambling; it has a bunch of awful PR folks constantly pushing its “we’re not a sportsbook, promise!” lie on social media (they have their own creepy mini Kalshi logo next to their Twitter accounts); Kalshi also has a CFTC that under the Trump admin is just a Kalshi cheerleader and never cracks down on it for clearly violating state laws on gambling. Numerous federal judges keep smacking down Kalshi - I believe Kalshi has lost most of the cases that state AGs have brought against it - but it has so many lawmakers in its pocket it doesn’t care (see Rep. Josh Gottheimer, a Dem, posing with Kalshi’s CEO recently on Capitol Hill as Gottheimer praised Kalshi for “taking underage betting seriously” (give me a break). Kalshi is just as loathsome as any of the sportsbooks and what the sportsbooks are doing to the purity of sports, and to tennis in particular, should make us all want to throw up. The players don’t deserve this.
(Edited to add a rant about Gottheimer and the many lawmakers who refuse to treat Kalshi like a sportsbook.)
Man this story is grim but true. Golfers and tennis players are as close to the fans at tournaments as any sport these betting markets are just setting up players to be at the mercy of idiots who don’t know when to stop betting.
I have finally subscribed to the paid version of your newsletter because of the quality of this essay. Thank you for reporting the big stories that mainstream media too often ignores, and thanks for writing with moral clarity (instead of, e.g., faux “objectivity”)
"But Kalshi has even created a situation in which a customer could be financially incentivized to bring Ebola to a country. That’s, for lack of a better term, deeply fucked up."
How the hell did we wind up with Craig Tiley? It was corrupt enough already. And now Ashe is short 2800 nosebleed (I.e. slightly affordable) seats. The Open has become a corporate joke.
Thank you for this. The monetary amounts being bet here… it’s sickening.
I got Long COVID in 2022 and haven’t been back to the Open since that year, which has made me really sad, though at this point I probably (definitely) couldn’t afford it anyway. But it hadn’t even occurred to me that this would be going on on the grounds. As soon as I read it though, I thought: of course. But I can’t imagine how awful this must be for the players.
When I attended the DC Open there was geo fencing in place preventing access to the main betting apps while within the tournament grounds. That seemed like a good compromise.
Betting need to by like tobacco, fine for adults, but no advertising.
I’m waiting for betting to come to senior tennis. There is nothing more absorbing and bet worthy than two 75 year old guys slugging it out! The USTA is and has always been a W___e! I wonder what percentage the players are getting of the new Kalishi deal?
Fucking grim
Kalshi is by far the most loathsome of the sports betting apps; DraftKings and FanDuel are also pure evil, but they at least work with state regulators and follow state-by-state laws. Kalshi on the other hand is a sportsbook with Trump Jr on its board that ignores state laws on gambling; it has a bunch of awful PR folks constantly pushing its “we’re not a sportsbook, promise!” lie on social media (they have their own creepy mini Kalshi logo next to their Twitter accounts); Kalshi also has a CFTC that under the Trump admin is just a Kalshi cheerleader and never cracks down on it for clearly violating state laws on gambling. Numerous federal judges keep smacking down Kalshi - I believe Kalshi has lost most of the cases that state AGs have brought against it - but it has so many lawmakers in its pocket it doesn’t care (see Rep. Josh Gottheimer, a Dem, posing with Kalshi’s CEO recently on Capitol Hill as Gottheimer praised Kalshi for “taking underage betting seriously” (give me a break). Kalshi is just as loathsome as any of the sportsbooks and what the sportsbooks are doing to the purity of sports, and to tennis in particular, should make us all want to throw up. The players don’t deserve this.
(Edited to add a rant about Gottheimer and the many lawmakers who refuse to treat Kalshi like a sportsbook.)
Man this story is grim but true. Golfers and tennis players are as close to the fans at tournaments as any sport these betting markets are just setting up players to be at the mercy of idiots who don’t know when to stop betting.
I have finally subscribed to the paid version of your newsletter because of the quality of this essay. Thank you for reporting the big stories that mainstream media too often ignores, and thanks for writing with moral clarity (instead of, e.g., faux “objectivity”)
"But Kalshi has even created a situation in which a customer could be financially incentivized to bring Ebola to a country. That’s, for lack of a better term, deeply fucked up."
How the hell did we wind up with Craig Tiley? It was corrupt enough already. And now Ashe is short 2800 nosebleed (I.e. slightly affordable) seats. The Open has become a corporate joke.
100%.
Insane after years of players publicly posting threats (especially WTA players) related to gambling.
So bad and tone deaf.
Thank you for this. The monetary amounts being bet here… it’s sickening.
I got Long COVID in 2022 and haven’t been back to the Open since that year, which has made me really sad, though at this point I probably (definitely) couldn’t afford it anyway. But it hadn’t even occurred to me that this would be going on on the grounds. As soon as I read it though, I thought: of course. But I can’t imagine how awful this must be for the players.
I believe I expressed misgivings here earlier this year about Craig Tiley's coming to the U.S. Open. I'm confident enough now to say that he sucks.
Always has.
So fucked up
Hard hitting reporting.
Lots of respect for how brave you are!!
When I attended the DC Open there was geo fencing in place preventing access to the main betting apps while within the tournament grounds. That seemed like a good compromise.
Betting need to by like tobacco, fine for adults, but no advertising.
A spot-on and seriously upsetting column, Ben. Thanks for shining a light on a dark subject in a sport we love.
Once again, thanks for your stellar journalism, Ben. This is an incredibly depressing development.
The USTA is a non-profit, seems like it's just for the tax breaks.
This is so incredibly dark and sad and confusing.
I’m waiting for betting to come to senior tennis. There is nothing more absorbing and bet worthy than two 75 year old guys slugging it out! The USTA is and has always been a W___e! I wonder what percentage the players are getting of the new Kalishi deal?