Heavyweight boxer Anthony Joshua appears to have agreed a partnership with Polymarket, which his upcoming opponent Jake Paul also has ties to.
Anthony Joshua’s (AJ) social media post featuring a screenshot of Polymarket has created an unusual subplot ahead of his fight with Jake Paul.
The heavyweight contest, set to take place on December 19 in Miami, will bring together the traditional boxing world and the influencer model with the fight to be shown on Netflix.
On December 15, Joshua posted a screenshot on X showing a Polymarket prediction market pricing him to win by KO, TKO or disqualification. The post, which didn’t include any disclosure indicating it was a sponsored post, was captioned: “100% loading…”
Athletes regularly use social media to promote upcoming fights, but the post has prompted questions around compliance with UK advertising rules.
Online content creators, including athletes and celebrities, are required to clearly label promotional content if they have been incentivised in any way. Failure to do so can breach consumer protection law and Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) guidelines.
There has been no official press release announcing a partnership between AJ and Polymarket and his management company’s website lists a number of commercial partners, including Under Armour, Hugo Boss, Lucozade and DAZN, but does not reference the prediction market platform.
However, AJ did post about Polymarket on December 10, writing: “@PolymarketSport x AJ. Markets don’t lie. App loading. #poweredbypolymarket #ad”. This post clearly identified the content as advertising, making the absence of similar disclosure on the later post more noticeable.
Insider Sport has contacted AJ’s management team, 258 MGT, for clarification on his relationship with Polymarket and whether the December 15 post was part of a paid agreement or was shared independently.
While it is legal for fighters to promote odds or prediction markets related to their own bouts, the situation becomes more sensitive when financial ties to betting or prediction platforms exist, as these can create perceived conflicts of interest even if no wrongdoing is involved.
AJ is not known to have a financial stake in Polymarket, but his opponent Paul does have historical links to the platform. Paul’s Co-founded venture fund, Anti Fund, invested in Polymarket’s Series A funding round in 2021.
Polymarket’s controversial rise
Founded in 2020 as a crypto powered prediction market, Polymarket’s growth has had its fair share of controversy, mainly due to questions over whether prediction markets should be treated as financial products or a form of gambling.
The platform allowed users to buy and sell positions on the likelihood of real world outcomes, ranging from elections to sports results.
The model meant Polymarket was in a regulatory grey area for much of its early life, with US regulators scrutinising whether its markets constituted unregistered derivatives trading, a classification which would subject the platform to the same oversight as traditional financial exchanges.
Over several years, Polymarket faced investigations by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC).
Critics have argued that prediction markets can resemble sports betting without the consumer protections, integrity safeguards and licensing requirements applied to regulated sportsbooks. Others have noted concerns around market manipulation, the potential for insider trading on real world events and the ability for large traders to influence perceived probabilities.
Supporters claim prediction markets offer more accurate forecasting than polls or bookmakers by aggregating crowd sentiment in real time.
In September 2025, Polymarket received a no action position from the CFTC, effectively granting it permission to operate legally in the US.
Shortly after gaining regulatory clearance, Polymarket secured a partnership with the UFC and Zuffa Boxing, becoming the official and exclusive prediction market partner for both promotions.
The prediction platform officially re-entered the market earlier this month, allowing users who signed up for the company’s waitlist to engage with sports contracts.
