Gov. Andy Beshear makes first legal wager on sports other than racing at Churchill Downs

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- Sports betting in Kentucky is now legal, the first time residents can legally bet on sports other than racing. 

To commemorate the opening day of retail sports betting in the state, a grand opening ceremony was held just before 10 a.m. Thursday at Churchill Downs Race & Sports Book, and Gov. Andy Beshear placed the state's first ceremonial sports wager.

"We're gonna go NCAA football, because the season just kicked off," Beshear said before making his bet. "We're gonna go over on wins for both UofL and UK. We're gonna go under on wins for Duke."

Beshear thanked lawmakers for making the historic day possible. 

"Today is a day that so many have fought for for so long," he said. "I want to thank everyone in the General Assembly who voted to finally allow Kentuckians to place the sports bets that they have wanted to for so many years. Today is a day where we recognize that our job in government is to serve the people. And that's exactly what we did by getting this legislation over the finish line." 

Beshear said the industry is expected to generate over $23 million in new revenue into Kentucky that will be used to "pave our roads, to help pay for our pensions and not for those dollars to flow to other states. And this is going to continue to supercharge our tourist industry, which had its best year in history in terms of economic impact."

The governor was joined by several state and local leaders, including Louisville Mayor Craig Greenberg and the First Lady of Louisville Rachel Greenberg; Ray A. Perry, Secretary, Kentucky Public Protection Cabinet; Jonathan Rabinowitz, Chairman, Kentucky Horse Racing Commission; Representative Al Gentry; and Cleo Battle, President & CEO of Louisville Tourism. Area sports celebrities Darrell Griffith, Bobby Perry, Dale Romans, Will Wolford and Eric Wood were also on hand. 

The Churchill Downs Race & Sports Book is located in the remodeled Aristides Lounge on the second floor of the Clubhouse. The space includes a massive TV wall, including a new 7'x24' LED video screen and a dozen 90" televisions. The large area has an additional 16 large-format TVs for sports and horse racing, 15 sports betting kiosks, seven horse betting kiosks, six betting windows with tellers, a bar and seating for more than 280 guests.

The Churchill Downs Race & Sports Book opened to the general public at 11 a.m., and betting will continue until 11:30 p.m. Guests must be at least 18 years old to wager and enter the Churchill Downs Race & Sports Book.

Churchill Downs is one of eight sportsbooks opening Thursday, the other at the Derby City Gaming location off Poplar Level Road.

The Kentucky Horse Racing Commission has approved the following race tracks and gaming facilities to partner with sportsbooks:

• Churchill Downs
• Derby City Gaming
• Cumberland Run
• Ellis Park
• Oak Grove
• Red Mile
• Sandy’s Gaming and Racing
• Turfway Park

And eight online betting platforms had temporary licenses approved:

• BetMGM
• Caesars
• DraftKings
• Circa
• Bet365
• FanDuel
• Penn
• Fanatics

A number of those providers will also operate the retail sportsbooks in person at tracks and gaming facilities. A ninth provider — Kambi — offering retail only, was also approved recently. 

Pre-registration opened at 6 a.m. Aug. 28.

Starting Sept. 7, Kentucky residents can begin depositing money into mobile accounts before live betting begins Sept. 28. 

Part of the new sports betting law requires resources for people with gambling problems. The Kentucky Council on Problem Gambling said public funding for education, prevention and treatment won't be available until next year. In the meantime, there is help available by calling or texting 1-800-GAMBLER (1-800-426-2537) or visiting Kentucky Gambling Help by clicking here.