Google Bars Prediction Market Ads In Five US States
Google Ads no longer allows prediction market advertising in five US states. The company's prediction markets policy now approves targeting only for the United States excluding Connecticut, Michigan, Nevada, New York and Ohio. Connecticut was the latest addition, with a change-log notice saying the prohibition took effect on October 7, 2026.
Elsewhere in the country, ads are still allowed, but only for advertisers that hold Google certification and meet strict regulatory criteria. For readers following the sector, our prediction markets hub tracks the platforms involved.
How The List Grew
Google first opened its ads system to federally regulated prediction markets on January 21, 2026, in a policy it announced on January 5. Since then it has added states one at a time. Google's change log shows Ohio prohibited from June 2, 2026, then Michigan and New York from July 13, 2026. Connecticut followed on October 7.
Nevada is also on the excluded list. The change-log notices gives no reason for the state additions. On the legal side, the Ninth Circuit has backed Nevada's gambling law against Kalshi, as we covered in our report on that ruling.
Who Can Advertise Elsewhere
In the approved US locations, Google requires the advertiser to be certified. It must also be one of two types of business. The first is a Designated Contract Market authorised by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission whose primary business is listing exchange-listed event contracts, such as economic or sports outcomes - different to what sportsbooks offer.
The second is a brokerage authorised by the National Futures Association to offer third-party access to products listed by such a market.
Advertisers must hold all applicable local financial, commodity and gaming licences and comply with local laws and other Google Ads policies. Applications are separate for each location an advertiser wants to target, so a certificate for one state does not carry over to another.
What The Policy Still Prohibits
The policy also lists content that leads to disapproval. This covers binary options and fixed-return contracts, markets on games of chance or anything legally defined as gambling that is not permitted as a regulated prediction market, and informational sites or blogs that provide trading signals. Google gives affiliate sites with related content or broker reviews as an example of that last category.
Google says it expects advertisers to research local rules for any location they target. Anyone running prediction market campaigns can check the policy page before launching in a new state.
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