In order to provide horse racing bettors with a diverse selection of betting options on this year’s Kentucky Derby, Nevada sports betting outlets and casinos are currently experiencing some sleepless nights. What is the root of the problem? In the contract between Churchill Downs Inc. and the Nevada Pari-Mutuel Association, there has been a stalemate over the amount of money that state casinos should transfer to Churchill Downs’ accounts in exchange for their simulcast signal.

Negotiations are still ongoing

The association that represents approximately 90 racebooks has confirmed that negotiations with Churchill Downs are still ongoing. The association represents approximately 90 racebooks. Duane Colucci, the race and sportsbook manager at Rampart Casino, has expressed his optimism about the contract, believing that it will be finalized in time for the upcoming Rose Bowl on May 7. 

Because of a disagreement over the amount that casino operators should pay to use Churchill Downs’ simulcast signal, racebooks in Reno, Las Vegas, Reno, and other Nevada locations have been unable to accept horse race wagers from the Louisville racetrack since the end of October 2019. As a result of approval from state regulators, a single exception was granted. 

Operators have been given the go-ahead to accept bets on Churchill Downs races that will be broadcast on a national level, the Kentucky Derby. Betting on the Kentucky Derby and the Kentucky Oaks would be permitted in this manner, allowing for increased revenue for the resorts. The exception was modified in 2021 to allow other graded stakes races to be broadcast on NBC as part of the NBC broadcast.

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Racebooks think outside the box

Because racebooks are unable to share bets with Churchill Downs’ pari-mutuel pool, they must pay close attention to their losses and concentrate on developing new betting alternatives for the two major horse racing events. The Rampart and a number of other large racebooks offered a much more generous plethora of options last year, including full odds on a variety of bets such as show, win, and place, whereas some operators only offered win types of bets in the previous year. The company also chose to cap the payouts on their exactas, daily doubles, Pick 3s, and trifectas at odds ranging from 150-1 to 500-1, but they did not offer any other exotic wagering options. Nonetheless, the new betting menu did not suffice for most racebook operators, even though they considered it to be better than a complete wagering blackout.

Employee Problems and Player Complaints

Nevada racebook operators are now crossing their fingers and hoping for the impasse between the two parties to end soon enough. Their employees have already been forced to start using almost obsolete skills they have not used since simulcasting was introduced. While no bet was denied in 2021, a lot more attention had to be paid to the process to make sure everyone remained fully alert during the procedure. Some bettors also had their own share of bad experiences and complaints regarding Derby trifecta wagers that they claimed were capped at 500-1 even though the warning signs displayed at the resorts were speaking about a 175-seat racebook. The missing exotic wagers and the caps on them were also a big turnoff for many horseplayers.

What If Negotiations Fail Again?

Suppose the two parties fail to reach an agreement in the upcoming days. In that case, the pari-mutuel association is likely to ask the Nevada Gaming and Control Board for permission to accept wagers under the workaround exception that was approved in 2019 and used on previous occasions. This would happen just one week before the big events at the tracks, but operators are optimistic about this scenario as well. With legalized sports betting in Kentucky having to wait at least one more year to become official, Kentucky Derby bettors could consider visiting California, Arizona, or Idaho and get access to the precious Derby and Oaks cards. At the end of February, Churchill Downs announced it would gradually scale down its iGaming and online sports betting activities and eventually shut them down completely after failing to generate favorable results.