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6th Circuit Lets Ohio and Tennessee Enforce Gambling Laws Against Kalshi
On September 25, 2026, the Sixth Circuit unanimously allowed Ohio and Tennessee to apply their gambling laws to Kalshi’s sports event contracts: it upheld the denial of an injunction in Ohio and vacated one in Tennessee. The court said Kalshi had not shown the contracts qualified as “swaps” under the Commodity Excha...
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Key takeaways
- On September 25, 2026, the Sixth Circuit unanimously allowed Ohio and Tennessee to apply their gambling laws to Kalshi’s sports event contracts: it upheld the denial of an injunction in Ohio and vacated one in Tennessee.
- The court said Kalshi had not shown the contracts qualified as “swaps” under the Commodity Exchange Act—and added that the Act would not preempt the state laws even if they did.
- The decision puts the Sixth Circuit with the Ninth against Kalshi, while the Third Circuit ruled in Kalshi’s favor on preemption.
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openai.comCreate a landscape editorial hero image for this Studio Global article: How did the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals rule on Kalshi’s challenges to Ohio’s and Tennessee’s regulation of sports-event prediction co. Article summary: The Sixth Circuit unanimously ruled on September 25 that Kalshi had not shown it was entitled to block Ohio or Tennessee from applying their gambling laws to its sports-event prediction contracts. It affirmed the denial . Topic tags: general, government, general web, news, user generated. Style: premium digital editorial illustration, source-backed research mood, clean composition, high detail, modern web publication hero. Use reference image context only for broad subject, composition, and topical grounding; do not copy the exact image. Avoid: logos, brand marks, copyrighted characters, real person likenesses, fake screenshots, UI text, readable text, watermar
The Sixth Circuit ruled unanimously on September 25, 2026, that Kalshi had not established a right to block Ohio and Tennessee from applying their gambling laws to its sports-event contracts. The court upheld the denial of a preliminary injunction in Ohio and vacated the injunction Kalshi had obtained in Tennessee. 1
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Why the court rejected Kalshi’s federal-law argument
Kalshi argued that its sports-event contracts were “swaps” covered by the Commodity Exchange Act (CEA), which gives the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) exclusive jurisdiction over swaps traded on designated contract markets. The Sixth Circuit concluded that Kalshi had not shown its contracts met the statute’s definition of a swap. 1
The court gave a separate reason for denying the requested relief: even assuming the contracts were swaps, Kalshi had not shown that the CEA expressly or implicitly preempts Ohio’s and Tennessee’s gambling laws. The decision therefore rejected Kalshi’s case on two grounds—its showing on the contracts’ classification and its preemption argument. 1
What happened to the injunctions
The cases reached the appeals court in different procedural positions. An Ohio federal court had denied Kalshi’s request to stop state enforcement, while a Tennessee federal court had granted an injunction. The Sixth Circuit left the Ohio denial in place and vacated the Tennessee injunction, allowing the two states to pursue their laws as the litigation continues. 1
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How the ruling compares with other circuits
The decision adds to a disagreement among federal appeals courts. The Third Circuit ruled for Kalshi on the preemption issue, while the Ninth Circuit ruled against Kalshi in a Nevada case, finding that the sports-event contracts were not swaps and that federal law did not preempt state gambling regulation. The Sixth Circuit’s decision likewise rejected Kalshi’s arguments. 8
That split raises the prospect of Supreme Court review, but it does not mean review is certain.
Kalshi’s response
Kalshi said it expected the Sixth Circuit’s decision would not survive further legal review.
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What is the short answer to "6th Circuit Lets Ohio and Tennessee Enforce Gambling Laws Against Kalshi"?
On September 25, 2026, the Sixth Circuit unanimously allowed Ohio and Tennessee to apply their gambling laws to Kalshi’s sports event contracts: it upheld the denial of an injunction in Ohio and vacated one in Tennessee.
What are the key points to validate first?
On September 25, 2026, the Sixth Circuit unanimously allowed Ohio and Tennessee to apply their gambling laws to Kalshi’s sports event contracts: it upheld the denial of an injunction in Ohio and vacated one in Tennessee. The court said Kalshi had not shown the contracts qualified as “swaps” under the Commodity Exchange Act—and added that the Act would not preempt the state laws even if they did.
What should I do next in practice?
The decision puts the Sixth Circuit with the Ninth against Kalshi, while the Third Circuit ruled in Kalshi’s favor on preemption.