PENN Entertainment CEO Jay Snowden used the company’s Q4 2025 earnings call to once again sound the alarm on prediction markets, describing the legal status of these platforms as being “really as clear as mud” and arguing the issue “can’t get in front of the U.S. Supreme Court fast enough.”
Snowden went on to say that PENN still can’t tell how much prediction markets may be affecting sportsbook handle, even as the company keeps an eye on overall betting trends. “I think there’s lots of variables that impact handle. Prediction markets certainly are one of those. How much? We don’t know today,” he said.
The PENN CEO made these comments during a Q&A exchange with Bank of America analyst Shaun Kelley, who asked Snowden whether PENN’s views on prediction markets had changed since last quarter, as the platforms continued to grow and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission had publicly backed them.
Snowden said his views hadn’t changed. “I laid out a lot of my thoughts on the last call,” he said. “I would say those thoughts really haven’t changed.”
The CEO didn’t mince words when discussing prediction markets during the company’s Q3 2025 earnings call in November, describing them as “a major threat to the industry” and warning, “This is existential. This is not—we’re going to be talking about this, I think, in a matter of months, not years.”
Even with all the discussion of prediction markets and their potential impact on sportsbook handle, PENN’s Q4 results included strong interactive momentum, with management saying the company posted positive adjusted EBITDA in December following the rebrand of ESPN Bet to theScore Bet in the U.S., and still expects its interactive segment to reach breakeven adjusted EBITDA in 2026.
Snowden Doubles Down on Prediction Market Risks
Snowden characterized the issue as both a legal and competitive problem for traditional casino operators.
“You’ve got regulators and attorneys general that are suing prediction markets,” he said. “You have the prediction markets that are suing regulators and trying to beat them to the punch.” He added that it is “obvious to anybody who’s ever been in the gambling business, and even those who aren’t, that sports betting is gambling.”
He also said the current environment leaves licensed casino operators in an awkward position because they cannot risk their land-based casino licenses. “We’re not gonna put those at risk,” Snowden said. “When regulators say, ‘This is illegal gambling, don’t do it,’ we don’t do it.”
While he acknowledged that prediction markets have some impact on handle, Snowden said that as long as the legal status of those markets remains in flux, the best option for land-based casinos that cannot participate in them is to push back.
“I think the best defense is offense, and we’ve gotta figure out how to play more offense here, and I’ve got ideas. I’ve shared that with some of my counterparts, and we continue to discuss those ideas with our regulators, as well as lawmakers, on how we can play more offense as an industry and turn this into a win for them, meaning the states, and also for the operators like us.”
Churchill Downs & Flutter Weigh in on Prediction Markets
Another major industry player that shares Snowden’s skepticism about prediction markets is Churchill Downs CEO Bill Carstanjen, who made it clear during his own Q4 2025 earnings call on February 26 that prediction markets wouldn’t easily gain access to premier racing content.
Carstanjen pointed out that pari-mutuel wagering on horse racing is protected by federal statute, requiring “express consent” for any third party to use their content.
“We haven’t agreed to provide our content to prediction markets,” he said. “Prediction markets are not a part of the pari-mutuel wagering on horse racing story, nor would I expect it to be anytime in the future.”
However, Flutter Entertainment has taken a much more open stance toward prediction markets. During Flutter’s Q4 2025 earnings call, CEO Peter Jackson was dismissive of concerns that prediction markets are eroding handle, saying, “We undertook a comprehensive review of potential cannibalization from prediction markets, and we have not identified any evidence of any meaningful impact.”
It’s important to note that Flutter’s positive outlook on prediction markets comes after it launched its own product, FanDuel Predicts, a platform developed in partnership with the derivatives marketplace CME Group, in December 2025. FanDuel Predicts offers sports event contracts in 18 states and non-sports markets in all 50 states.
A look at the three February 26 earnings calls shows that PENN, Flutter, and Churchill Downs do not all view prediction markets the same way. PENN sees a legal threat it wants to fight with its industry partners, Flutter sees a chance to grow through FanDuel Predicts, and Churchill Downs is drawing a hard line around its racing content.
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PENN Entertainment CEO Jay Snowden used the company’s Q4 2025 earnings call to once again sound the alarm on prediction markets, describing the legal status of these platforms as being “really as clear as mud” and arguing the issue “can’t get in front of the U.S. Supreme Court fast enough.” Snowden went on to say
The post PENN CEO Says Legal Status of Prediction Markets is ‘Clear as Mud’ appeared first on CasinoBeats.