Kansas Casino Sues State over ‘Historic Horse Racing Machines’ at Dog Track

• A KS Casino Operator is Suing the State for Allowing ‘Historic Horse Racing Machines’
• Sports Betting was made Legal in Kansas on May 12, 2022
• By Law, Kansas Sports Betting Revenue Will Fund Effort to Lure KC Chiefs

A KS Casino Operator Is Suing the State for Allowing ‘Historic Horse Racing Machines’

Last week, legal sports betting launched in Kansas and already state authorities are being sued for what is being called a breach of agreement since the new law allows the mostly defunct Wichita Greyhound Park to place 1,000 ‘Historic Horse Racing Machines’ at their location.

That, according to the nearby Kansas Star Casino, breaks a deal they made with the state that won’t expire until 2026 that says no competition from similar facilities will be allowed in the Wichita area, a stipulation they claim is broken by these Historic Horse Racing Machines.

These machines look and play like slot machines, but they replay portions of previously run horse races and those results affect what the bettor wins, and more importantly, are not considered slot machines so therefore they are allowable in the eyes of the state.

Now a court will decide whether that is true, as the Kansas Star Casino wants those 1,000 machines shut down, though, despite that, its operator, Boyd Gaming, has gone on record as backing legal sports betting in the state, just not those machines at the Greyhound Park.

All this is new for Kansas who only recently legalized and launched their sports betting market.

Sports Betting Was Made Legal in Kansas on May 12, 2022

On May 12, 2022, Kansas Governor Laura Kelly signed a sports betting bill into law, this after it was approved by the state congress back in April, a tricky process that is still unfolding as the state must now set up regulations, issue licenses, and test their online financial infrastructure.

It’s a case of better late than never, seeing as Kansas and the other U.S. states have been allowed to legalize, regulate, and tax their own sports betting market ever since May 2018 when the Supreme Court overturned PASPA and gave those rights to the individual states instead.

The hope is that the in person and online sports betting market will get set up in time to launch for the upcoming NFL season which starts in September, a lucrative source of gambling handle that has funded new income streams for the states now taxing that existing revenue.

Of course, Kansas has specific plans for the money it raises off legal sports betting.

By Law, Kansas Sports Betting Revenue Will Fund Effort to Lure Kc Chiefs

As we reported recently in Kansas Congress Approves Sports Betting Bill Aimed at Snagging KC Chiefsv,

one of the goals of the Kansas lawmakers who created this sports betting bill… is to lure more pro sports teams to Kansas,

an objective that has irked their Missouri neighbors.

The Wheat State wants to create a stadium environment that will entice two of their major targets in this deal – the owners of the Kansas City Chiefs of the NFL and the KC Royals of the MLB – two popular teams that would attract millions of Kansas fans to those venues.

Fortunately for many Chiefs current fans, the team’s lease at Arrowhead Stadium doesn’t expire until 2031, so there is still plenty of time to make a counter-pitch to stay in Missouri, but with millions of annual dollars at stake, those teams could go to the highest bidder in the end.