Sports-betting symposium at Keeneland Sept. 6

LEXINGTON, Ky. – A three-hour symposium on sports betting and its impact on horse racing has been scheduled for the afternoon of Sept. 6 at the Keeneland Sales Pavilion in Lexington, Ky., the organizers of the conference announced on Tuesday.

The symposium, which is being organized by Breeders’ Cup Ltd. and BloodHorse, the company owned by The Jockey Club that publishes The Blood-Horse magazine and other branded media, will be held from 3-6 p.m. Eastern. A release from the organizers said that it would be held in a “town hall format with sessions focused on economics, politics, and the consumer.”

In May, the Supreme Court struck down a federal law that prohibited states from authorizing sports betting. Since then, several states have authorized the practice, including Delaware, New Jersey, Mississippi, and West Virginia. Although racetracks and racinos in those states have been authorized to accept sports bets, the racing industry as a whole is attempting to ensure that other states also allow racetracks to take sports wagers and/or legalize fixed-odds betting on racing.

Confirmed speakers for the symposium so far include Greg Means, the federal lobbyist for the National Thoroughbred Racing Association; John Hindman, the general counsel of FanDuel/TVG; Bill Knauf, the vice president of business operations for Monmouth Park, which began accepting sports bets in June; Victor Bigio, a consultant for the bet-processing company Sportech; Daniel Shapiro, the vice president of the bookmaking company William Hill, which runs the Monmouth sports book; Dan Spillane, a senior vice president of the National Basketball Association; and Damon Thayer, a state senator in Kentucky.