A faction of the Oklahoma tribe Kalshi calls a prediction market partner is disputing that relationship amid a broader fight over tribal gaming rights and federally regulated sports event contracts.
Alabama-Quassarte Tribal Town Chief Samuel Marshall Jr. said Tuesday that “any suggestion or assertion” that the tribe had partnered with Kalshi or another prediction market operator was “false,” contradicting an Oct. 7 announcement that named it among four new partners.
“The tribal administration of the Alabama-Quassarte Tribal Town’s position is clear: prediction markets undermine the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act and Oklahoma/Tribal State compacts by allowing illegal Class III gaming to diminish the sovereignty of Tribal nations and undermine revenue streams critical to Tribal government programs and services,” Marshall said.
The dispute comes as Oklahoma lawmakers remain unable to agree on legalizing sports betting, including how to preserve tribal gaming exclusivity. The state’s tribal gaming compacts generated more than $221 million in exclusivity fees in 2025, according to the Oklahoma Gaming Compliance Unit.
Kalshi tribal partnership disputed
Kalshi had announced that Alabama-Quassarte would launch PokkeTrades, a prediction market app the tribe would own and market using Kalshi’s exchange infrastructure.
The announcement included statements from Wilson Yargee, whom Kalshi identified as the tribe’s chief, and Michael Stopp, its vice president of economic development. Both described prediction markets as a revenue opportunity for tribes without casinos.
CNN reported that competing factions within Alabama-Quassarte have taken opposing positions on the partnership. Marshall’s statement did not address the leadership dispute or the status of the announced venture.
The Oklahoma Indian Gaming Association, which represents 25 tribes but not Alabama-Quassarte, welcomed the pushback.
“While the Alabama-Quassarte Tribal Town is not a member of the Oklahoma Indian Gaming Association, we applaud their tribal leadership’s position on prediction markets. We agree that prediction markets are illegal Class III gaming, undermining the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act and infringing upon the sovereignty of Tribal nations,” Oklahoma Indian Gaming Association Chairman Matthew L. Morgan said in a statement.
Predictions issue inches toward Supreme Court
The disagreement comes as many more tribes challenge Kalshi’s position that federal commodities law permits sports event contracts to operate outside state and tribal gambling restrictions.
A coalition of 145 tribes and tribal organizations filed a brief last week urging the Supreme Court to review New Jersey’s case against Kalshi. The groups argue that sports prediction markets violate the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act and compete with tribal sportsbooks without complying with the same regulatory requirements.
Kalshi maintains that its contracts are federally regulated financial instruments rather than sports bets. CEO Tarek Mansour has argued that prediction markets and tribal gaming can coexist as distinct businesses.
The NFL, a coalition of 39 state attorneys general and the American Gaming Association also backed Supreme Court review, arguing that states should retain authority over sports gambling. Kalshi is among several operators that have scaled back operations following adverse court rulings, with the company geofencing tribal lands in California and courts allowing Nevada, Ohio and Tennessee to enforce their laws as litigation plays out.
