Novig sues Wisconsin officials over sports event contract enforcement

Novig, a federally supervised exchange for sports event contracts, has filed a lawsuit against Wisconsin officials in federal court in an attempt to prevent the state from applying its gambling laws to their contracts. The company alleges that federal commodities law grants exclusive oversight through the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), leaving Wisconsin without authority to regulate them as gambling. Novig has previously sued New York, Massachusetts, Washington, and New Mexico over similar issues.

The dispute arose after Wisconsin brought civil cases against Kalshi, Polymarket, Crypto.com and their affiliates for offering sports betting contracts within the state. Wisconsin's attorney general accused these companies of commercial gambling and creating a public nuisance. Novig counters that federal CFTC oversight supersedes Wisconsin gambling laws.

Created in 2021, Novig aims to build markets around sports events. The company received federal designation as a contract market in June 2026 and started offering its services to Wisconsin customers last week. The platform has handled over $6 billion in trading volume since its nationwide rollout.

Novig argues that the contracts at issue are federally regulated derivatives under federal law, qualifying as swaps that can only be listed, traded, and settled on federally registered exchanges. The exchange has implemented safeguards such as a 21-year minimum age requirement, deposit and trading limits, account freezes, and screening for individuals with influence over events or material nonpublic information.

In response to Wisconsin's enforcement efforts, Novig seeks a declaration that federal law preempt Wisconsin's gambling provisions for its regulated transactions. The company also requests that Attorney General Joshua Kaul and Division of Gaming administrator John Dillett be barred from enforcing those provisions against Novig. The lawsuit demands an expedited consideration of a preliminary injunction.