Prediction markets are pushing deeper into live esports trading
Polymarket’s latest esports partnership shows how prediction markets are moving deeper into territory long occupied by sportsbooks: fast data, in-play decision-making and event coverage built into the betting interface.
The company has partnered with GRID, an esports data platform, to add live streams, match statistics and interactive features to its esports hub. The deal points to a more practical overlap with sportsbooks. Prediction markets still operate through tradable contracts rather than bookmaker-set odds, but in live esports, they depend on some of the same infrastructure: low-latency data, reliable settlement, live coverage and markets that can respond quickly to events inside the match.
Latency becomes part of the product
In esports, small delays can change the value of a market. A round win, a player “death”, a map swing or a draft decision may alter probability before a casual viewer has fully processed what happened.
GRID’s role is built around official server-level data, delivered through partnerships with publishers and tournament organisers, including Riot Games or Ubisoft. Polymarket says the integration gives users access to real-time data, visualisations and live streams without switching between external sites.
“Esports moves fast, and so should the markets built on it,” explained Ari Borod, President of Sports Business Development at Polymarket. “GRID gives our users official data with lower latency and access to live streams in real time, all in one place. It’s a better, differentiated experience for traders and a bigger opportunity for the sport.”
The format remains different from fixed-odds betting, but the engagement logic is familiar to sportsbook operators. Keep the user inside the product, reduce the need for outside information, and make the event easier to follow while decisions are being made.
“The best trading experiences are built on fast, reliable information,” Moritz Maurer, CEO of GRID, added. “Official data gives Polymarket access to real-time information directly from the source, while streaming and live match experiences keep users connected to the action. Together, they’re creating a single destination built specifically for esports traders.”
Live betting logic enters prediction markets
The gambling industry has seen this pattern before. Sportsbook products have increasingly been built around live betting, data feeds, match trackers and streaming. In that context, Polymarket’s esports hub points to a familiar product priority: keeping the customer within the betting environment for as long as possible.
Prediction markets are now moving along a similar path. A user may not be placing a conventional bet, but they are still reacting to live events, weighing new information and taking a financial position on an outcome. The product need is familiar: fast data, trusted settlement and enough context to act without leaving the platform.
That has particular relevance in esports, where live betting already dominates behaviour: according to Oddin.gg, a supplier of esports odds, data and risk-management products to sportsbook operators, between 70 and 85 percent of bets across major esports titles in its 2025 review were placed in-play. Bettors are also moving beyond simple match winners into player markets, utility markets and other more detailed propositions.
For prediction markets, official data opens the door to similar depth. GRID had already partnered with Sportstensor, Polymarket’s market maker and liquidity provider, to provide verified esports data for prediction markets.
Data rights are becoming more strategically important. If prediction markets want to offer live, granular, esports-related contracts, they need reliable feeds of the kind already used across regulated betting, trading and media products. Without them, latency and settlement risk become barriers to growth.
Media rights logic enters trading
The streaming element is also significant. Sportsbooks have long understood that live pictures can support betting activity, even where the stream is not the main entertainment product. A trader who can watch the event, follow statistics and trade in one place is less likely to leave the platform.
Prediction markets still operate through a different structure, with tradable contracts rather than bookmaker-set odds. But the competitive boundaries are narrowing. In the US, prediction markets have faced disputes over whether sports event contracts belong under financial regulation, gambling regulation, or somewhere between the two. For sportsbook operators, the issue is also commercial, as prediction markets move further into live sport, data rights and user attention.
Analysts at investment firm Bernstein have projected that prediction market volumes could reach $240 billion in 2026 and $1 trillion annually by 2030. Sports contracts remain a major driver of activity, even as analysts expect other categories to grow.
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