Churchill Downs CEO Bill Carstanjen, touting record earnings during his company’s second quarter earnings call, took time out to fire verbal shots at those operating skill games illegally.
As Virginia casinos could expand this year to include Petersburg, skill games remains in limbo after Gov. Glenn Younkin and lawmakers failed to reach an agreement this year.
Concerns raised about skill games that ‘skirt gaming laws’
In addition to its namesake racetrack in Louisville, Churchill Downs operates historical horse racing venues in several different states, including Colonial Downs in Virginia, which the Virginia Racing Commission oversees.
Carstanjen previously boasted that the “properties are performing as we expected, and in some cases exceeding our expectations.”
He was not complimentary about certain skill game operators, however. Carstanjen said in the recent earnings call, “I think there is a theme in certain states and in certain parts of the country of sort of bald-faced attempts to try to skirt gaming laws to introduce gaming products.”
Dubbing these “egregious violations” of state law, he encouraged vigilance from officials who oversee the operation of the devices.
But he then downplayed the danger some, saying,
“I wouldn’t describe it as something we need to call out as a massive additional threat or close to legalization or something like that. It’s just part of the landscape, and it takes lots of work and communication with local authorities to point it out and to ensure that it’s getting the proper focus it deserves from law enforcement.”
One such variation, dubbed “pre-reveal” games, attempts to remove the skill from the games by allowing players to see what outcomes will come next. These types of games are showing up more frequently in Virginia shops, and have led some gaming vendors, like Pace-O-Matic to echo Carstanjen’s claim.
Skill games legislation stalled in Virginia
In Virginia, the General Assembly and Gov. Glenn Youngkin are at odds over a bill introduced earlier this year that would have resolved the last few years of legal limbo that skill games venues have found themselves in.
The machines, allowed to operate during the pandemic, currently sit dormant in convenience stores and other businesses across the state that at least partially depend on them for their livelihood.
The General Assembly passed SB 212 in March, which would have restored their legal status. But Gov. Youngkin amended the bill, creating several provisions legislators in favor of skill games considered untenable. Youngkin called for games to be prohibited within 35 miles of a casino or a racetrack and for distancing them from schools, daycares, and places of worship.
Legislators met in June on another issue they were trying to resolve with Youngkin, leaving the skill games matter tabled for now.
Churchill Downs planning to expand
Things are moving forward for Churchill Downs, however.
According to the Louisville Courier-Journal, which reported on the company’s second quarter earnings call,
“Nationwide, Churchill Downs has 27 gaming facilities and continues to seek opportunities for future expansion and entry into new markets. In the next several months, Churchill Downs expects to open two additional historical racing machine venues. The company is also exploring ‘expansion opportunities’ in Kentucky, Virginia, and New Hampshire.”
Churchill Downs purchased Colonial Downs for nearly $2.5 billion in 2022, acquiring Rosie’s Gaming Emporium as part of the deal. The chain has seven historical horse racing venues, with an eighth on the way, though plans for another location in Henrico are meeting with some opposition from local leaders.
