Kansas Horse Racing Betting Sites

Parimutuel wagering is legal in Kansas, both online and in-person.

However, all horse racing tracks in the state have been closed since 2008 due to declining revenue. A large casino planned near Wichita promises to offer simulcast wagering over the near term, but reviving live horse racing in Kansas remains a longer-term prospect.

The Kansas Racing and Gaming Commission (KRGC) oversees pari-mutuel wagering in Kansas, although its functions are rather limited due to the current lack of live race tracks.

Fortunately, horse racing fans aren’t entirely out of luck. Online horse racing betting in Kansas is available via advance deposit wagering operators (ADWs). Each of the following horse racing betting sites holds ADW licenses in multiple states and offers legal wagering on horse races held across the country and worldwide.

All legal horse racing betting sites in Kansas provide secure wagering and direct access to pari-mutuel wagering pools across the country and worldwide. That means Kansas horse racing fans can place all the same wagers and receive identical payout odds as in-person bettors at every track.

However, every horse racing betting site has unique advantages, so readers should consider testing multiple options and seeing BettingUSA’s online racebook reviews before settling with one.

For example, some horse racing betting sites in Kansas emphasize ease of use for casual bettors, while others provide complex handicapping tools for advanced users. Yet others excel in horse racing betting bonuses or live streaming media and strategy content for fans who want a richer experience.

Kansas Horse Racetracks

Multiple greyhound and horse racetracks have called Kansas home since 1989, but they closed one by one over the ensuing years due to declining revenues. Today, Kansas no longer has live horse racing or in-person pari-mutuel wagering.

However, the Kansas horse racing drought seems unlikely to last forever. Positive legislative developments have opened the door to making live horse racing a sustainable endeavor once again, but fans should expect things to progress incrementally.

Kansas legalized historical horse racing machines (HHRs) in 2022, while multiple horse racing associations have thrown their support behind legislation that would direct some of the revenue from HHRs to the local breeding and racing industry.

Wichita Greyhound Park

Wichita Greyhound Park closed permanently in 2007 after voters rejected a referendum that would have allowed slot machines and casino games at the facility.

Owner Phil Ruffin continued to advocate for legislation that would authorize casino-style games and make the track viable, but his efforts over the next fifteen years bore no fruit. At one point, he stated he had become “burned out” on trying.

But the story of Wichita Greyhound Park doesn’t end there. Legislation approved in 2022 authorized the Kansas Racing & Gaming Commission to issue a single license to a facility in Sedgwick County to operate up to 1,000 historical horse racing machines. Wichita Greyhound Park won the license in 2023, and Phil Ruffin announced plans to revamp the facility, rename it Golden Circle, and offer simulcast horse racing wagering to complement its historical horse racing machines.

Ruffin expects the renovated facility to reopen in September 2025.

The Woodlands in Kansas City

The Woodlands was a horse and greyhound track in Kansas City that closed in 2008 amid declining revenues. Efforts to authorize slots at Woodlands and other state race tracks have been unsuccessful since then, leaving the Woodlands dormant.

Wide opposition to greyhound racing has further dampened the dormant track’s prospects of ever reopening.

Anthony Downs and Eureka Downs

Anthony Downs and Eureka Downs closed in 2010 due to financial difficulties. Both tracks relied on a share of the revenue from simulcasting at Wichita Greyhound Park and The Woodlands. After Wichita Greyhound Park and The Woodlands closed permanently, Anthony Downs and Eureka Downs became insolvent and ceased operations.

Camptown Greyhound Park

Camptown Greyhound Park in Frontenac, Kansas, opened briefly in 1995 but closed within months of its grand opening. It attempted to reopen in 2000, but that effort was similarly brief, and Camptown Greyhound Park has remained closed ever since.

Camptown Greyhound Park owner Phil Ruffin almost found a way to save the track in 2008 via contract negotiations with the Kansas Lottery Commission that would have authorized 600 video gaming machines.

However, Ruffin ended the negotiations without reaching a deal, likely due to a combination of factors, including Kansas’ high tax rate on casinos and a planned destination casino nearby in Cherokee County.

Kansas Off-Track Betting Locations

Off-track wagering is legal but unavailable in Kansas because state law only permits licensed racetracks to operate off-track betting facilities (OTBs). As a result, there are no OTBs in operation in Kansas.

However, the future Golden Circle Casino will offer simulcast wagering when it opens, making it the state’s only brick-and-mortar venue with legal horse racing betting. Looking beyond Golden Circle Casino, licensed horse racing betting sites will remain the closest alternative to Kansas OTBs for people who don’t live near the planned casino.

Kansas Horse Racing Betting Law

Kansas voters approved the state to legalize and regulate horse racing, greyhound racing, and pari-mutuel wagering via a public referendum in 1986.

Lawmakers responded in 1987 by crafting and passing the Kansas Parimutuel Racing Act to officially legalize pari-mutuel wagering in the Sunflower State. The Act also created the Kansas Racing & Gaming Commission (KRGC) and directed it to adopt additional regulations to implement the law.

Kansas horse racing betting law is thorough in all respects, with one glaring exception: it does not address the legality of advance deposit wagering.

Neither the Kansas Parimutuel Racing Act nor KRGC regulations address advance deposit wagering, and the KRGC has offered no guidance on the matter. However, most of the nation’s high-profile horse racing betting sites accept Kansas customers 18 or older on the assumption that if ADWs aren’t illegal, then they are de-facto legal.

Will Live Horse Racing Return to Kansas?

There are indications that live horse racing may return to Kansas. The law that authorized historical horse racing machines in Sedgwick County could pave the way for future race tracks to get the funding they need to be financially viable, provided lawmakers pass additional legislation.

One such bill, HB 2434, introduced in early 2023, would apply a 3% tax on the total amount wagered on historical horse racing machines. Revenue generated by the tax would be earmarked for the Kansas Horse Breeding Development Fund and the Horse Fair Racing Benefit Fund.

HB 2434 died without much action, but its introduction indicates that the horse racing industry is motivated to bring live racing back to Kansas.

Kansas Historical Horse Racing Machines

Historical horse racing machines are coming to the Sunflower State, thanks to a provision in the 2022 law that authorized sports betting in Kansas. A provision in the Kansas sports betting bill authorized one facility to install up to 1,000 historical horse racing machines, and Phil Ruffin confirmed he would compete for the singular license.

Ultimately, two operators prepared bids for the historical horse racing license: Phil Ruffin with Wichita Greyhound Park and Boyd Gaming, the parent company of Kansas Star Casino in Mulvane.

However, Boyd Gaming was forced to withdraw its proposal just hours before the Kansas Racing & Gaming Commission began the selection process. In a private, last-minute meeting, the Commission introduced a new rule: no entity that already operates a casino may qualify for a historical horse racing license in the same gaming zone.

By disqualifying Phil Ruffin’s only competition, the Kansas Racing & Gaming Commission practically gifted Wichita Greyhound Park the historical horse racing license. Phil Ruffin received the license as expected and has confirmed plans to install up a thousand HHRs, revitalize the entire facility, and potentially build a 110-room hotel.

Kansas Horse Racing Betting FAQ