September is the heaviest sports betting month on the calendar, with the NFL regular season kick-off and first full month of the NCAA football underway. It’s also a time when young adults (among the most vulnerable to problematic gambling behavior) head back to school for autumn semesters where they will be tempted to wager on a full suite collegiate sports in the months ahead while juggling the anxiety and stress of academic life. Yes indeed, September may very well be the most important month to check in on the state of problem gambling in the United States of America. Below is a review of current stories that are developing as we speak.
September 2025 News Regarding Problematic Gambling / Sports Betting that America Needs to Know About
It’s Responsible Gaming Education Month
We suppose we buried the lead by not mentioning it the introduction of this period’s problem gambling news report, but we have your attention now. September is Responsible Gaming Education Month (RGEM). RGEM is an annual campaign that runs every September, led by the American Gaming Association (AGA), to raise awareness about responsible gaming (RG) practices and problem gambling. The mission is to educate casino gamers, sports bettors, lottery players, prediction market traders (more on this below), and parimutuel wagerers on setting limits and understanding risks. At the same time, the month long campaign provisions problem gaming support resources for consumers, while also encouraging operators to enhance their own RG programs.
As America’s leading virtual platform for problem gambling treatment, the initiatives included in RGEM are something that we engage in 365 days of the year, each and every year. Regardless, please do help us spread the word about RGEM to everyone in your familial, social, and professional circle by sharing this very article for them to reference.
Kindbridge Research Institute Launches SSD
On September 8th, Kindbridge Research Institute announced the launch of Stigma Stand Down (SSD), a Colorado based initiative dedicated to breaking down mental health barriers among active-duty service members, veterans, and their families. For those who are not already aware, problem gambling has a disproportionately high prevalence rate among active and retired members of the military. View more on Stigma Stand Down here. If you represent a region in need of a similar program please connect to Kindbridge to discuss options for your own vulnerable population (contact here).
Football Prediction Markets Released for First Time
Perhaps the biggest and most contentious development to come from the sports betting side of problem gambling in America this September, is the first time arrival of football (NFL and NCAAF) as a trading option on prediction market platforms. Prediction markets arrived on the scene of sports betting under the guise of “sports trading” in the second fiscal quarter of 2025. Since then, they have offered trading options on all sorts of sports. But the true test of how impactful sports trading’s integration into the gambling populous would be, would be the start of the 2025 NFL/NCAAF seasons. It played out as expected, as prior to the conclusion of 2025 NFL Week 1, it was reported that trading volume on the country’s leading football prediction market platform topped $300 million over the weekend, including almost $200 million on NFL Week 1 Sunday alone. It’s not hyperbolic to suggest that when trades from other prediction markets on the regulated and unregulated sector are tabulated, the take could be closer to the $1 billion mark. Maybe even higher.
Football prediction market trading adds yet another layer of complexity to the problem gambling crisis in America. Click here to learn more about why vulnerable gamblers need to be more mindful as this new form of gambling expands the sports betting arena.
Further, litigation between state-by-state regulators and leading sports trading operators is underway. The former have sent cease and desist letters to said operators, and at press there is suggestion that sports traders may be (or should be) removed from Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) jurisdiction and instead become regulated by the gambling commissions of each state. This would remove sports trading operators from states where sports betting remains illegal. To follow this development, Kindbridge has created a map of U.S. states where sports trading is permitted. Those who ask “Is sports trading legal?” in their respective state can click the banner to keep up to date on the matter.
Stay tuned as stories develop.
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