The Grand Show

How to play The Grand Show

Given the rise of prediction markets, this week arguably represents the most frenzied campaign since the historic PASPA decision in 2018. Buttressed by massive capital injection from substantial funding rounds, operators have spent handsomely on celebrity endorsements. Over the last week, ads featuring LeBron James, Sydney Sweeney, Marshawn Lynch and Jeremy Piven have showered the airwaves. Even Pete Sampras, who disappeared from the public spotlight for the better part of two decades, resurfaced in a US Open spot for Kalshi.

While Polymarket pulled off a coup with the signings of James, Eli Manning and Derek Jeter, a Novig ad featuring Sweeney arguably received as much fanfare. Sweeney, an Emmy Award-nominated actress known for her role in HBO’s Euphoria series, stars in the spot titled “Just Sports.” As of Friday afternoon, the Novig post on social media platform X received at least nine million views.

Throughout the ad, Novig throws shade on its rivals for offering niche markets on events such as the timeframe for when traders believe that Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro will be removed from office. Unlike operators such as Kalshi and Polymarket, Novig has opted to limit its offerings to purely sports. “No betting on wars, or deaths…or politics,” Sweeney mused.

What is The Grand Show?

The array, which includes an 800-kilowatt battery storage system, is expected to cover about 30% of the casino’s electricity needs. Prairie’s Edge is the Upper Sioux Community’s principal economic engine, helping fund housing, healthcare, education, and public safety.

In June, Administrative Law Judge Joseph Meyer sided with the tribe, finding Minnesota Valley’s policies did not prohibit behind-the-meter generation and that disconnecting the casino would violate the cooperative’s obligation to provide service.

More than two dozen other Minnesota electric cooperatives subsequently backed the findings, agreeing that threatening disconnection over a non-exporting solar project violated core cooperative principles.

What is The Grand Show?

Instead, the phrase embodies the ethos of the Lone Star State, where Texans demonstrate a sense of pride and identity that exemplifies the state’s outsized persona. As event contracts proliferate, the adage could be applied to prediction markets, where volume ranks among the highest in the nation. Last Sunday, for instance, trading activity for an NFL matchup between the Dallas Cowboys and the New York Giants topped $208 million across US markets, figures from Aldrin Research show. At Kalshi, volume for the NFC East showdown on Sunday Night Football eclipsed that of any NFL regular-season game last year.

The volume is not only seen across NFL markets, but also on those in college football, which is practically a religion in Texas. When Ohio State faced Texas in a Top 5 matchup on 12 September, volume surpassed 50.7 million contracts traded, according to Odds Shopper, a prediction market tracking site. The robust activity set the stage for an intense legislative hearing three days later in the Texas Senate.

The 62-minute hearing featuring Kalshi and a prominent lobbyist from the American Gaming Association provided a blueprint for the state’s evaluation of prediction markets next year. Before the calendar turns to 2027, though, stakeholders will monitor races for governor, attorney general and the US Senate on election night. The results in all three Texas races will likely have a major impact on the future of prediction markets inside the state.