France Orders ISPs Block Polymarket Prediction Market

TLDR

Frances gambling regulator has ordered national internet providers to block Polymarket, treating its crypto prediction markets as illegal gambling with manipulation risks.

1. Frances National Gambling Authority (ANJ) told ISPs to geoblock Polymarket, citing unauthorized gambling, addictive features, and alleged rigged markets, including hacked weather data.
2. The decision sits inside a broader global crackdown, with Polymarket already restricted or blocked in dozens of countries and EU regulators eyeing binary options style rules.
3. Crypto users in Europe face tighter access to on chain prediction markets; the key unknown is whether regulators will eventually license these platforms or keep treating them as gambling to block.

Deep Dive

1. What France Ordered And Why

On July 16, 2026, ANJ ordered French ISPs to block access to Polymarket, stating that prediction sites like Polymarket constitute illegal gambling under French law and lack authorization. ANJ noted that promoting unauthorized gambling is a criminal offense with fines up to 100,000 euros, and highlighted addictive features without the safeguards seen in licensed casinos and sportsbooks.

The regulator also pointed to manipulation risks. In particular, it cited weather related contracts where sensors may have been hacked, and raised concerns over large traders influencing odds, echoing examples of outsized political and sports bets on the platform. These factors combined into the case for a full national block rather than partial restrictions.

2. Global Pressure On Prediction Markets

Frances move is not isolated. Polymarket reports being geoblocked in 36 regions, including countries such as Spain, Poland, Brazil, Singapore, and others, after regulators classified event contracts as unlicensed gambling or binary options style instruments. The Czech Republic recently ordered ISPs to block Polymarket under its Gambling Act in a similar fashion.

At the EU level, the European Securities and Markets Authority has warned that many prediction contracts may already fall under the blocs ban on retail binary options if they qualify as financial instruments, meaning firms cannot simply rebrand bets as event contracts to avoid financial rules. In the United States, state gambling regulators and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission are also contesting jurisdiction over platforms like Kalshi and Polymarket.

3. Impact For Crypto Users And What To Watch

For users in France, Polymarket access via standard ISPs is effectively cut off until the platform either secures a gambling license or changes its offering to satisfy ANJ. Similar actions elsewhere fragment global access, pushing prediction trading toward geofenced interfaces, VPN based workarounds, or jurisdictions that adopt bespoke regimes, such as Gibraltars dedicated prediction market framework.

The key variables to watch are whether major platforms pursue regulated status in specific countries, whether the EU crystallizes a uniform approach under financial law rather than gambling rules, and how enforcement evolves around high profile events like elections and major sports tournaments, where activity spikes and political sensitivities are highest.

Conclusion

Frances order to block Polymarket reinforces a clear trend. As prediction markets scale and touch politics, sports, and macro events, regulators are increasingly classifying them as gambling or binary options rather than neutral data tools. For crypto users, the opportunity in on chain prediction markets now depends less on technology and more on how fast a workable regulatory framework emerges in key jurisdictions.