Maryland Horse Racing Groups To Meet Today To Approve Year-Round Racing Schedule

The Maryland Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association (MTHA) “will continue to provide financial assistance to the money-losing operator of Laurel Park and Pimlico Race Course” to ensure a year-round live racing schedule next year, according to Hanah Cho of the Baltimore SUN. A few details of a tentative deal between the MTHA and the Maryland Jockey Club “emerged Monday after the two sides agreed Saturday to maintain 146 days of live racing in 2012.” Horse racing in Maryland “still faces mounting challenges: competition from racetracks with slots and table games in neighboring states, declining wagering revenue and falling attendance at the tracks.” The last-minute agreement came “less than three weeks before the start of the 2012 racing season and prevented a logjam that threatened the industry's future.” The deal “is scheduled to go before the Maryland Racing Commission” today, and the group “must approve the racing schedule.” MTHA attorney Alan Foreman yesterday “declined to reveal the amount that the horsemen's group agreed to provide to help pay for the Jockey Club's day-to-day operations.” Cho notes the Jockey Club “has lost millions of dollars annually for at least a decade.” As talks about the sport's future continue, Foreman said that “nearly every issue would be on the table, including the possibilities of adjusting the number of racing days in the future and coordinating Maryland's racing program with those of racetracks in other states” (Baltimore SUN, 12/20).

LOOKING AHEAD TO NEXT YEAR: The DAILY RACING FORM's Matt Hegarty reported NYRA "did not meet its budget projections in 2011, contributing to a larger-than-expected loss this year." But the racing association "expects to turn a profit in 2012 for the first time in years." Revenue this year "was lower than expected because the association had expected to begin receiving subsidies from a casino located at the track in September, roughly two months earlier than the casino ended up opening." NYRA Exec VP & COO Ellen McClain said that they expect to turn a profit next year "largely because of subsidies from the casino, which is generating more revenue than projected by NYRA or the casino's operator, the Genting Group" (DRF.com, 12/19).