Indiana Horsemen Reply to Statewide Gaming Research

Today the Indiana Horsemen, representing the state’s Thoroughbred, Standardbred, and Quarter Horse associations, launched their place following the publication of the statewide gaming examine required below Senate Enrolled Act 43 (2025).

While the Horsemen respect the examine’s acknowledgment of the importance of the horse racing business’s $2 billion annual financial and agricultural affect, they’re warning that any advice to find a brand new on line casino in Indianapolis would decimate the state’s horse racing business and unravel three many years of accountable progress and partnership.

“Indiana’s horse racing industry is the backbone of rural economic development and agribusiness across all 92 counties,” stated John DeLong, President of the Indiana Standardbred Association. “The study rightfully recognizes our impact, but placing a casino in Indianapolis would cripple the racetrack casino model that makes this industry possible. It would unravel decades of investment, could eliminate hundreds of jobs, and destroy a proven partnership between the horsemen, the racetracks, and the state.”

Brian Elmore, External Relations for the Indiana Horsemen’s Benevolent and Protective Association (INHBPA), added: “A casino in Indianapolis would cannibalize the racetrack markets in Anderson and Shelbyville – the very regions that fund racing purses and breeding programs through shared revenue with the racinos. In short, the juice wouldn’t be worth the squeeze. Any increase in gaming revenue could come at the cost of an entire industry that sustains families, farms, and communities across Indiana.”

The Horsemen emphasised that the present construction – centered on the racetracks in Anderson and Shelbyville – has been nationally acknowledged as a gold commonplace for the way gaming and agribusiness can coexist and thrive. The mannequin has led to sustained progress in breeding packages, job creation, and agribusiness funding statewide over the previous 30 years.

While some areas of the state might probably assist new gaming growth with much less disruption, the Horsemen cautioned that even growth within the northeastern area might nonetheless affect the business. “If expansion were ever to occur, the furthest northeastern part of the state would result in the least amount of harm,” the Horsemen stated. “But any move closer to the existing racino markets risks eroding the very foundation of Indiana horse racing.”

The Horsemen concluded by reaffirming their dedication to defending the integrity of the partnership that has made Indiana’s horse racing program a nationwide success story.

“Indiana’s policymakers have long shown foresight in ensuring that racing and gaming grow together, not at each other’s expense,” the assertion learn. “We simply ask that same prudence continue to be applied – because the health of Indiana’s rural economy, and the thousands of Hoosier jobs tied to it and livelihoods that depends on it. We look forward to watching this situation close and work with the legislators.”

This press launch has not been edited by BloodHorse. If there are any questions please contact the group that produced the discharge.