Kentucky Downs, NYRA reach simulcast agreement
Kentucky Downs and the New York Racing Association reached an agreement on a simulcasting contract on Saturday, one day prior to Kentucky Downs starting its meet and thus averting a partial blackout in the two markets.
An agreement between the two companies had stalled earlier in the week over the price of the Kentucky Downs signal and NYRA’s practice of treating on-track bets through its account-wagering company as wagers that would be subjected to a lower rate.
Officials for the companies did not comment Saturday on the change in discussions that had led to the stalemate. As a result of the agreement, NYRA customers will be able to bet on the Kentucky Downs signal, and Kentucky bettors at brick-and-mortar locations will be able to bet on the final two days of racing at Saratoga Race Course, NYRA’s premier track.
Kentucky Downs is scheduled to run a six-day meet this year starting Sunday and running through Sept. 12. The Kentucky Downs signal is enormously popular among horseplayers due to its large fields.
Because the live-racing track in Kentucky controls the simulcast menu for all brick-and-mortar locations, the lack of an agreement between Kentucky Downs and NYRA would have blacked-out the Saratoga signal for the last two days of its meet. Account-wagering companies other than NYRA would have still been able to offer betting on the signal.