MCP server

ParlayLedger MCP server

Connect Claude, Cursor or any MCP client to ParlayLedger with your API key. Agents get two tools: search the RDK network for strategies and picks published by ParlayLedger users, and backtest a strategy on ParlayLedger's historical odds and results.

• Transport Streamable HTTP
• Sessions Stateless
• Responses JSON
• Server name parlayledger-rdk

The server is stateless: every request stands alone, there is no session id and no event stream to resume. Clients send JSON-RPC over POST. GET and DELETE on /mcp return 405.

Authentication

Use the same customer API key as the REST API, from your dashboard. Send it either way:

• X-API-Key: <apiKey>
• Authorization: Bearer <apiKey>

The key must belong to a ParlayLedger account. Every request, including initialize and tools/list, needs a valid key.

Metering

• Each tools/call is metered as one API call against your monthly quota, with the same quota headers and the same 429 when it runs out.
• initialize, tools/list and ping are not metered.
• Send one tools/call per HTTP request. A JSON-RPC batch with more than one is rejected with 400.
• On top of the API call, rdk_search_strategies uses one search and backtest_strategy uses one backtest from your plan's monthly RDK limits.

Connect a client

Put your key in an environment variable, for example PARLAYLEDGER_API_KEY, rather than in a file you commit.

Claude Code

Add it with the CLI, or commit a project .mcp.json that reads the key from the environment. Add --scope user to the CLI command to use it in every project.

claude mcp add --transport http parlayledger https://api.parlayledger.com/mcp \
  --header "X-API-Key: $PARLAYLEDGER_API_KEY"

Cursor

Add the server to ~/.cursor/mcp.json, or to .cursor/mcp.json in a project.

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "parlayledger": {
      "url": "https://api.parlayledger.com/mcp",
      "headers": {
        "X-API-Key": "${env:PARLAYLEDGER_API_KEY}"
      }
    }
  }
}

Claude Desktop

Two ways to connect. Use whichever your account supports.

1. Connectors with a request header In Settings → Connectors → Add custom connector, enter the server URL, choose no sign-in, and add an x-api-key request header with your key.
   Note:

   May not be on your account

   Connector request headers are in beta and may not be available on every account. If you do not see them, use option 2.

2. The mcp-remote bridge Add this to claude_desktop_config.json and restart Claude Desktop. It runs the mcp-remote package with npx, which needs Node.js, and sends your key as a header.
   claude_desktop_config.json Copy

   {
     "mcpServers": {
       "parlayledger": {
         "command": "npx",
         "args": [
           "mcp-remote",
           "https://api.parlayledger.com/mcp",
           "--header",
           "X-API-Key:${PARLAYLEDGER_API_KEY}"
         ],
         "env": {
           "PARLAYLEDGER_API_KEY": "YOUR_API_KEY"
         }
       }
     }
   }

Other clients

Most clients that support remote HTTP servers take a URL and headers:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "parlayledger": {
      "url": "https://api.parlayledger.com/mcp",
      "headers": {
        "Authorization": "Bearer YOUR_API_KEY"
      }
    }
  }
}

Try it with cURL

curl https://api.parlayledger.com/mcp \
  -H "X-API-Key: $PARLAYLEDGER_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -H "Accept: application/json, text/event-stream" \
  -d '{
    "jsonrpc": "2.0",
    "id": 1,
    "method": "tools/call",
    "params": {
      "name": "rdk_search_strategies",
      "arguments": { "query": "NHL home underdogs after a loss", "league": "NHL", "verifiedOnly": true }
    }
  }'

The result is a JSON-RPC response whose result.content[0].text holds the tool output as JSON.

rdk_search_strategies

Search sports betting strategies and picks published by ParlayLedger users on the RDK knowledge network. Results include ParlayLedger-verified records.

Arguments

• querystring, 1 to 2000 charactersrequired

  What to look for, in plain words, for example "NHL home underdogs after a loss".

• leaguestringoptional

  Only this league, for example NFL, NBA, NHL, MLB or NCAAB.

• verifiedOnlybooleanoptional

  true for verified winning work only.

Result

backtest_strategy

Backtest a sports betting strategy against ParlayLedger historical odds and results. Accepts Rule DSL v1 JSON or the id of a published strategy.

Arguments

Send exactly one of the two.

• rulesobject (Rule DSL v1)optional

  The strategy: version 1, league, market (moneyline, spread or total), side, up to six conditions on pregame fields, price and stake.

• publicationIdstringoptional

  The id of a published ParlayLedger strategy, for example from an rdk_search_strategies result.

{
  "rules": {
    "version": 1,
    "sport": "icehockey",
    "league": "NHL",
    "market": "moneyline",
    "side": "home",
    "conditions": [
      {
        "field": "home_is_favorite",
        "op": "eq",
        "value": false
      },
      {
        "field": "home_prev_result",
        "op": "eq",
        "value": "loss"
      }
    ],
    "price": {
      "source": "consensus"
    },
    "stake": {
      "units": 1
    }
  }
}

Rules use pregame information only, so a backtest never sees the result of the game it is betting on.

Result

Errors and limits

A tool that cannot run returns a result with isError: true and one of these messages:

HTTP errors come before the tool runs:

• 400Send one tools/call per request.
• 401Valid X-API-Key required, or Invalid API key
• 405GET or DELETE on /mcp
• 429Monthly API quota exceeded