Esports activity on Kalshi reaches $1.73bn in 12 months

Esports contracts traded on Kalshi totalled $1.73 billion in the 12 months to September 2026, as activity on the prediction-market platform rose sharply alongside major tournaments. August was the busiest month, reaching $391 million.

The growth follows a small start: before October 2025, monthly esports volume on the platform had never exceeded $0.4 million. Despite the increase, esports remained a small part of Kalshi’s wider activity.

From one event to multiple games

Kalshi’s first esports offering in autumn 2025 covered the winner of the League of Legends World Championships. League of Legends accounted for almost all of the $5.2 million in esports contracts traded that October.

The platform subsequently added single-match contracts for Counter-Strike 2, League of Legends, Valorant and Dota 2. Quarterly esports volume climbed from $44 million in the final quarter of 2025 to $173 million in the first quarter of 2026, $549 million in the second and $967 million in the third.

Major events coincided with some of the busiest periods. June included the IEM Cologne Major in Counter-Strike, while August featured the Esports World Cup’s Counter-Strike finals and Dota 2’s The International. August’s $391 million was the monthly peak in the figures reported.

Growth within a much larger platform

Esports accounted for 0.1% of Kalshi’s sports volume, excluding combinations of contracts, in October 2025. At its August peak, it represented 2.9% of the platform’s single-leg trading; that share fell to 1.6% in September.

Those figures put the rise in perspective. They also need careful interpretation: prediction-market volume counts contracts traded, so moving in and out of a position can increase the total without additional money entering the platform. The $1.73 billion figure is therefore a measure of trading activity, rather than an equivalent amount of new spending.

World Championships offer the next measure

The League of Legends World Championships, taking place in the United States, will provide another indication of interest in esports contracts on Kalshi. The event also returns attention to the game that made up nearly all of the platform’s esports activity when it began offering them last year.

Beyond Kalshi, Polymarket has signed a partnership with tournament organiser BLAST. Kalshi has also sought someone to lead its esports go-to-market strategy, while Riot Games has reportedly been considering partnerships with Kalshi or Polymarket. For tournament organisers, publishers and sponsors, the contract figures offer another measure of attention to events alongside viewership data.