California sports betting apps 2026: Legal status & DFS options – CBS Sports

California sports betting apps 2026: Legal status & DFS options  CBS Sports

As of October 2026, sports betting is still not legal in California and likely will not be on the ballot before 2028. In the meantime, residents have legal alternatives, including prediction markets like Kalshi and Polymarket, as well as Daily Fantasy sports. Those in California can use prediction markets like Kalshi and Polymarket, as they operate as prediction markets rather than traditional sportsbooks. Because sports betting is not legal in California and negotiations between the state's tribes and mobile operators remain at a standstill, prediction markets offer one of the few ways for California residents to get financial skin in the game on sports outcomes. They function differently from standard sportsbooks by allowing users to trade on event contracts, which places it outside the scope of California's sports wagering restrictions.

Below are the promos offered to new users by both Kalshi and Polymarket. Polymarket's offer is straightforward, giving new users $25 after a deposit of $10. Sports betting is not legal in California, and legalization does not appear to be on the immediate horizon. Both Propositions 26 and 27 (one permitting in-person betting and one allowing online wagering) were defeated on the ballot in 2022, and subsequent efforts have also stalled. In April 2025, DraftKings and FanDuel proposed a unified plan with the state's tribes to introduce online sports betting