Is Kalshi legal? › Tennessee
Status as of September 25, 2026 · every line has its source and date · not legal advice
As of September 25, 2026, Kalshi is available in Tennessee, and its sports contracts are available, according to CBS Sports (September 24, 2026). 11 state actions involving Kalshi and 1 involving Polymarket are listed below with their sources. This is a dated summary of public sources, not legal advice.
| Service | Tennessee |
|---|---|
| Kalshi (CFTC-regulated exchange) | Available |
| Kalshi sports contracts | Available |
| Polymarket US (for comparison) | Unclear (sources disagree) |
| polymarket.com (international site) | No new trades for US users |
Kalshi is reported live in Tennessee, including sports: a federal preliminary injunction (2026-02-19) bars Tennessee officials from enforcing the Sports Gaming Act and gambling statutes against Kalshi, and Tennessee's Sixth Circuit appeal (argued 2026-07-30 together with Ohio's) was undecided as of the last docket entries checked. Polymarket US is reported blocked in Tennessee by CBS Sports, but national lists conflict and no first-party or court source confirms it, so it is marked unclear.
| Date | Company | Event and source |
|---|---|---|
| 2026-07-30 | Kalshi | The Sixth Circuit heard oral argument in the consolidated Tennessee and Ohio appeals, and no decision had been found as of 2026-09-25. KalshiEX LLC v. William Orgel, No. 26-5235 (6th Cir.) docket, entry 73 'Cause argued' (CourtListener) |
| 2026-06-24 | Kalshi | The CFTC filed an amicus brief in the Tennessee appeal supporting Kalshi and asking the court to affirm the injunction. Amicus Brief of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission in No. 26-5235 in Support of Appellee and in Support of Affirmance, Doc. 63 |
| 2026-06-17 | Kalshi | The Sixth Circuit consolidated the Tennessee and Ohio appeals for submission and removed the SWC as a party to the appeal. KalshiEX LLC v. William Orgel, No. 26-5235 (6th Cir.) docket, entry 56 (CourtListener) |
| 2026-05-26 | Kalshi | Nevada, Utah and 39 other states (including Maryland and Louisiana), plus the District of Columbia and the Northern Mariana Islands, filed an amicus brief supporting the Tennessee officials. Brief of Amici Curiae Nevada, Utah, 39 Other States, the District of Columbia, and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands Supporting Appellants, No. 26-5235 (6th Cir.), Doc. 42 |
| 2026-04-27 | Kalshi | The Sixth Circuit granted Tennessee's motion to have its appeal considered by the same panel, on the same day, as Kalshi's Ohio appeal (No. 26-3196), with both to be submitted as soon as practicable. KalshiEX LLC v. William Orgel, No. 26-5235 (6th Cir.) docket, entry 22 (CourtListener) |
| 2026-03-20 | Kalshi | The Tennessee officials appealed the injunction to the Sixth Circuit, which docketed the appeal as No. 26-5235 on 2026-03-23. KalshiEX LLC v. Orgel, No. 3:26-cv-00034 (M.D. Tenn.) docket, entries 54 and 56 (CourtListener) |
| 2026-02-19 | Kalshi | The court granted Kalshi a preliminary injunction against the state officials, finding Kalshi likely to succeed because its sports event contracts are 'swaps' and conflict preemption applies; it also dismissed the SWC itself on sovereign-immunity grounds and required a $500,000 bond. Memorandum, Doc. 48, M.D. Tenn. No. 3:26-cv-00034 |
| 2026-02-02 | Kalshi | At the end of the preliminary-injunction hearing, defense counsel said the state would not enforce its cease-and-desist letter against Kalshi until the court ruled. Memorandum, Doc. 48, M.D. Tenn. No. 3:26-cv-00034 (procedural history) |
| 2026-01-12 | Kalshi | Judge Aleta A. Trauger issued a temporary restraining order barring the defendants from enforcing Tennessee's Sports Gaming Act (Tenn. Code Ann. 4-49-101 et seq.) and gambling statutes (39-17-501 et seq.) against Kalshi until a preliminary-injunction hearing. Temporary Restraining Order, Doc. 22, M.D. Tenn. No. 3:26-cv-00034 |
| 2026-01-09 | Kalshi | The Tennessee Sports Wagering Council sent Kalshi a cease-and-desist letter demanding that it stop offering sports event contracts in Tennessee immediately, void Tennessee users' pending sports contracts and refund their deposits by January 31, 2026, warning of fines of $10,000 to $25,000 per offense. SWC letter to KalshiEX LLC, 'Demand to Cease and Desist Offering Sports Events Contracts in Tennessee' (filed as Doc. 8-1, M.D. Tenn. No. 3:26-cv-00034) |
| 2026-01-09 | Kalshi | Kalshi sued SWC chairman William Orgel, SWC executive director Mary Beth Thomas, the SWC and Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Tennessee (No. 3:26-cv-00034). KalshiEX LLC v. Orgel, No. 3:26-cv-00034 (M.D. Tenn.) docket (CourtListener) |
| 2026-01 | Polymarket | CoinDesk reported that Tennessee regulators ordered Kalshi, Polymarket and Crypto.com to stop offering sports event contracts, void open contracts and refund customer deposits by January 31. Federal judge temporarily halts Tennessee's bid to shut down Kalshi sports contracts (CoinDesk, Sam Reynolds) (news) |
State regulator: Tennessee Sports Wagering Council (SWC). The SWC licenses and regulates sports wagering and sent the 2026-01-09 cease-and-desist. tn.gov returned HTTP 403 on 2026-09-25, so this site was not opened; the SWC's role is confirmed from its letter and the court opinion.
Kalshi has been a CFTC-designated contract market since November 4, 2020 (CFTC release 8302-20). Whether states may still apply their gambling laws to sports event contracts is being decided in the courts, and the federal appeals courts do not agree yet:
How sure is this page? Confidence: medium. Court records and a 2026-09-24 news roundup confirm Kalshi's status and the key court events, but Polymarket's blocked status rests on a single news source and a pending Sixth Circuit ruling could change Kalshi's status. Researched September 25, 2026; court cases can change the status at any time, so check Kalshi's app before you trade.
Related: every state · is Polymarket legal in Tennessee? (Polymarket View) · Kalshi fee calculator · Kalshi taxes · Kalshi FAQ
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As of September 25, 2026, Kalshi is available in Tennessee, and its sports contracts are available, according to CBS Sports (September 24, 2026). 11 state actions involving Kalshi and 1 involving Polymarket are listed below with their sources. This is a dated summary of public sources, not legal advice.
Kalshi's sports contracts are available in Tennessee according to the sources on this page as of September 25, 2026. State lawsuits and court orders can change that quickly, so check the dated timeline and Kalshi's app.
Yes, federally: the CFTC designated KalshiEX LLC as a contract market on November 4, 2020. States disagree on whether their gambling laws also reach sports event contracts, and federal courts are split, so availability differs by state.