# Underdog Fantasy **Underdog** is a fantasy-sports company led by founder and CEO [[Jeremy Levine]]. It built its business on "pick'em" contests, which let players combine predictions about individual athletes' stats. That product sits close to the line between fantasy and betting. In 2025 and 2026 Underdog turned itself into a prediction-market operator and became a founding member of the industry's lobby. ## From fantasy to event contracts | Date | Step | |---|---| | Sept 2, 2025 | Launches sports prediction markets with [[Crypto.com]]'s CFTC-registered exchange in 16 states, starting with states that have no legal sports betting, including **California and Texas**. Levine: "The future of prediction markets is going to be about sports — and no one does sports better than Underdog." | | Dec 2025 | Arizona's Department of Gaming revokes Underdog's daily-fantasy license over the Crypto.com sports contracts, calling them illegal sports betting. Underdog appeals and keeps operating fantasy contests while the appeal is pending. | | Dec 11, 2025 | Co-founds the [[Coalition for Prediction Markets]] with [[Kalshi]], Crypto.com, [[Coinbase]] and [[Robinhood]]. | | Mar 9, 2026 | Buys the CFTC-registered exchange (DCM) and clearinghouse (DCO) of Aristotle, the company behind the political-betting site PredictIt; Aristotle keeps PredictIt. Underdog no longer needs Crypto.com. Levine: owning both "allows the company to take its markets to bettors without partners." InGame reported a **$1.2 billion valuation** that month and that Underdog gave up sports-betting licenses in Missouri and North Carolina. | Underdog's path is the cleanest example of the arbitrage the states are fighting: a company with a state license problem bought a federal license and gave the state licenses back. ## See also - [[Coalition for Prediction Markets]] · [[Crypto.com]] · [[Kalshi]] - [[Prediction Markets]] · [[Sports Betting]] · [[Prediction Markets and Gambling Sector]]