COLLINSVILLE, Ill. — Fairmount Park will significantly expand its racing this season this year, a change driven by legislation that has grown gambling and legalized sports betting in Illinois.
The Collinsville horse track begins its 2020 racing season Tuesday, with plans for a 60-day schedule. That’s a boost from 41 days of live racing in 2019.
The expanded season comes after Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker last year signed legislation that allows for gambling operations at horse racetracks, a component that Fairmount’s leadership has long lobbied for to generate additional revenue as the track has shortened its seasons in recent years.
Under the legislation, in order to qualify as a “racino” and for sports betting, Fairmount President Brian Zander said the facility is asked to run 700 races a year, meaning it will eventually need to operate a 100-day season. The track decided on 60 days this year as a way to gradually build up to an even longer season, Zander said.
In recent years, Fairmount has typically started its racing season just ahead of the Kentucky Derby, which is held on the first Saturday in May. With the expanded season, Fairmount will run its usual Tuesday afternoon schedule and also start with afternoon races on Saturday, then transitioning to its typical 7:30 p.m. start on Saturdays after the Kentucky Derby. The schedule also includes Friday night racing on select days later in the season.
The expanded schedule is just the start of changes expected at Fairmount as a result of the state’s decision to expand gambling. The horse track has applied for a sports betting license, with Zander saying it hopes to begin sports wagering operations during the Major League Baseball season. Ahead of this month’s NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Tournament, the Illinois Gaming Board has started awarding temporary permits to facilities to operate sports books. Zander said Fairmount has started to remodel the first floor of its clubhouse, which will house the sports wagering operation.
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