La Liga team Osasuna hedges relegation risk with a $1.4 million insurance policy through Kalshi

BlockBeats News, June 9th. According to Protos, the Spanish La Liga football club Osasuna once hedged its financial risk of relegation from La Liga through the prediction market platform Kalshi. The club revealed that it purchased €1.2 million (about $1.4 million) "insurance" from the broker Howden through the Kalshi platform. If relegated from La Liga, the club would receive a €6 million (about $6.9 million) payout to help cover subsequent financial losses.

Osasuna stated that documents from Howden and La Liga confirmed that such policies are usually used by clubs and sports organizations to hedge against financial emergencies related to their business activities. Earlier, Semafor reported that an unnamed Spanish football club made a multi-million dollar investment through Kalshi to hedge against financial losses from relegation. Osasuna lost 0-1 to their opponent in the final match of the season but maintained their La Liga status due to a superior goal difference. Therefore, the club incurred a loss on the "premium" on Kalshi but secured their place in La Liga.

The trading firm Susquehanna was the counterparty to this relegation risk transaction, earning over $1 million in profit, with the risk analysis company Game Point Capital assisting in arranging the deal. Osasuna's statement did not mention Susquehanna or Game Point Capital but only referenced Howden. Additionally, three days after the end of Osasuna's match, the Spanish government temporarily banned prediction markets such as Kalshi and Polymarket from operating in the country for 3 to 4 months. The reason cited was that they did not have a gambling license and were operating in Spain without authorization.