Circa Sports owner Derek Stevens is not a fan of prediction markets.
That much was clear when Stevens shared some strong opinions in a published report on Tuesday. The rise of prediction markets, including Kalshi, Polymarket, and others, has altered the sports betting landscape. The ongoing legal battles between states and prediction markets show no signs of abating.
“They’re pirates. They’re thieves,” Stevens said. “We’d be able to offer -102 splits either way as well if we didn’t have all the fees to pay. I tend to believe that more balanced heads are going to prevail.”
Stevens took issue with the platforms getting away without paying a federal sports-betting excise tax, state gaming taxes, league data fees, and problem-gambling funds.
“We’re paying all those fees,” he said. “They don’t. Effectively, they’re thieves.”
Most industry insiders believe that the Supreme Court will ultimately decide the fate of prediction markets. For his part, Stevens isn’t so sure after New York recently sued Kalshi for $36 billion.
“I don’t see the state of New York backing down and saying, ‘Oh, just because you guys are shrewd, we’re going to take a billion-dollar hit on our state revenue,’” he said.
Stevens added, “lllinois is a great example. Hell, they charge a 25-cent fee on every wager. Just because Kalshi and Polymarket are avoiding those fees, does that make them better? I think no. It’s preposterous.”
Stevens Consistent With His Message
Earlier this year, Stevens appeared on a Bloomberg podcast ahead of Super Bowl 60. He likened prediction markets to “marauders” during that interview.
Stevens also used the analogy of selling hijacked big-screen TVs off a truck at half price, which he reiterated this week. Stevens noted that Circa competes “pretty well” with prediction markets, but conceded that they hurt his business.
“With us running a low-hold model, we felt prediction markets took a decent amount of handle away from us,” he said.
Circa Expanding to Arizona
After Circa was recently approved for a license to operate in Arizona, Stevens noted that the plan is to begin operating there in January 2027, but that’s “still subject to change.”
Circa is currently available in Nevada, Colorado, Kentucky, Iowa, and Illinois. Those states offer both retail and online wagering. Arizona is slated to begin online only. That doesn’t rule out adding a retail operation later.
Stevens played coy in saying that he has “a unique interest in developing a retail presence as well, which could be with another operator. But I can’t talk about it.”
