Horse Racing
Robert Evans, president and chief executive officer of Churchill Downs, Inc., said Monday that “the status quo has great momentum in the United States Thoroughbred industry” and discussed Churchill’s efforts to alter that situation.
His remarks came at the Kentucky International Equine Summit held at the Radisson Plaza Hotel in Lexington.
Churchill invested $100 million to develop its Advance Deposit Wagering (ADW) business and Evans is confident that the move will pay dividends.
“The online internet ADW business is the way of the future for racing,” Evans said.
He discussed how Churchill’s www.twinspires.com Web site was designed and built, but noted that many of the features will not be unveiled until after this Saturday’s Kentucky Derby. Heavy traffic on the site might create problems, he noted.
Evans said that the online environment is a great opportunity for Churchill because it can facilitate developing new customers, allow the track to understand its customers better, and is the most cost-effective way to take Churchill’s racing product to a non-U.S. market.
He also said that online betting is the most convenient and lowest-cost way for customers to wager.
Evans thinks that “the online experience can rekindle interest in the on-track product.”
As an example, he said that when the internet was introduced, some experts felt that it would kill library use, but research has shown the internet users now actually visit libraries more often.
In his remarks, Evans conceded that Thoroughbred breeders and owners face a tough time making money, as do racetracks, and he said that the industry’s economics dictate that a consolation among tracks in North America will continue.
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