Even with the online Kentucky sports betting market now in full swing, more in-person sportsbooks continue to open following their earlier start.
Sandy’s Racing & Gaming announced last week it will open its doors October 26, including its BetMGM Sportsbook. The brick-and-mortar sportsbook missed the opening of in-person Kentucky sports betting, which began September 7.
BetMGM launched with other online sportsbooks September 28.
Big development in Kentucky
Sandy’s Racing & Gaming is a $75 million development in Ashland by Revolutionary Racing, the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians and the Kentucky Quarter Horse Racing Association. The project also includes the state’s first quarter horse track, which will begin racing in 2025.
The 75,000-square-foot facility includes 5,200 square feet for the in-person BetMGM Sportsbook. It features three “cinema-sized screens.”
“With a world-class gaming floor, locally sourced dining options, multiple entertainment stages, and an unbelievable BetMGM Sportsbook lounge, Sandy’s will be the area’s premier entertainment destination,” Sandy’s Racing & Gaming President John Marshall said in a release.
BetMGM Kentucky sports betting partnership
BetMGM announced its market-access deal with Sandy’s Racing & Gaming in August. Despite the state’s law allowing 18-and-up bettors, BetMGM will keep its age limit at 21.
Each of the state’s nine horse racing tracks can partner with up to three online sportsbooks. Those tracks can also open in-person sportsbooks.
Sandy’s Racing & Gaming is also the online access partner for bet365.
Kentucky sports betting underway
Bluegrass State sports betting began September 7 when in-person sportsbooks opened across the state in time for the first NFL betting weekend.
Online sports betting started three weeks later with seven sportsbooks, including bet365 and BetMGM. The other sportsbooks were:
- Barstool Sportsbook
- Caesars
- DraftKings
- Fanatics
- FanDuel
In the first weekend of online sportsbooks, GeoComply tracked more than 10 million geolocation checks from more than 325,000 accounts.
