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LeBron James is bringing his influence to Polymarket.
The decision to partner with the prediction market comes after James’s endorsement deal with DraftKings expired earlier this summer, a source confirmed to Front Office Sports. James teased his Polymarket relationship Saturday morning on X/Twitter. Within seven hours, his post racked up nearly 10 million views.
A source familiar with the partnership tells FOS the post was the first step in a larger “campaign” that will begin early next week. The agreement between James and Polymarket will focus on football, which is similar to his endorsement deal with DraftKings, first signed in 2024.
The NBA doesn’t have a specific policy prohibiting its players from endorsing prediction markets, a person familiar with the matter previously told FOS. However, players are not allowed to promote specific NBA-related event contracts, the person said. That lines up with how the NBA currently treats traditional sports betting.
James’s deal represents the latest entry in the ongoing battle between Polymarket and Kalshi for high-profile, sports-related partnerships.
Polymarket’s league-level deals include MLB, the NHL, MLS, Serie A, and LaLiga, and it has team-level agreements with the New York Rangers and Yankees. NFL star Saquon Barkley is reportedly invested in Polymarket.
Kalshi counts Giannis Antetokounmpo, Kyle Kuzma, Breanna Stewart, and other athletes as investors. It is also an official partner of the NHL (the deal with Polymarket is not exclusive), and has team-level deals with the NHL’s Blackhawks and MLB’s Giants, Braves, Dodgers, Red Sox, and Padres (the deals with the Dodgers, Red Sox, and Padres are exclusive). Last week, it also reached a last-minute agreement with the U.S. Open.
The James-Polymarket agreement comes as sources have told FOS the NBA is widely expected to have prediction-market partners in place by the time this season tips off next month. There’s no indication James’s deal has anything to do with the NBA’s potential plans. James’s first regular season game as a 76er is on Oct. 20 against the Knicks in New York.
As they push further into mainstream society, prediction markets continue to face pushback from states that feel their platforms offer what amounts to illegal sports betting. A recent appeals court ruling against Kalshi at the Ninth Circuit set up a potential Supreme Court showdown. While experts widely agree the issue of sports-event contracts will eventually reach the nation’s highest court, there’s no guarantee it will happen immediately because of that ruling.
A representative for James declined to comment, and DraftKings was not immediately available to comment.
