Prediction markets

HONG KONG, CHINA--Winfried Engelbrecht-Bresges is at the helm of the Hong Kong Jockey Club, an international racing powerhouse, for nearly two decades. He has navigated Hong Kong Racing through financial crises, political upheaval and a pandemic, and never let anyone think that his visionary sight had lost its compass. In the conversation that follows, recorded on the eve of the HKJC's international race meeting, the chairman of both the Asian Racing Federation and the International Federation of Horseracing Authorities once again covered ground that will resonate well beyond Hong Kong--from...

The Kentucky legislature has passed a sweeping bill that opens the door to fixed-odds wagering in the state and bars a cap being placed on the number of mares bred to a stallion there. In its final passage Wednesday, the 150-page bill passed out of the state House on a 64-19 vote, with 17 no-votes. It was delivered to Governor Andy Beshear's office on Thursday with a veto-proof majority. HB 904 was introduced into the state legislature by Republican Representatives Matthew Koch and Michael Meredith. Unlike the fluctuating odds that...

A floor amendment has been added to HB 904--a sweeping piece of legislation seeking to legalize fixed-odds wagering in Kentucky--that is designed to essentially ensure no limit can be imposed on the number of mares bred to a stallion in the state. It requires that the Kentucky Horse Racing and Gaming Corporation select and use an entity to act as "a registrar of Thoroughbreds" in the state, meaning it could choose an organization other than The Jockey Club, which is the current breed registry for the U.S., Canada and Puerto...

Last week, Republican Representatives Matthew Koch and Michael Meredith introduced into the Kentucky state legislature a sweeping gambling bill with several key components, including legalized fixed-odds wagering in Kentucky along with efforts to essentially expand and modernize its gambling infrastructure. Unlike the fluctuating odds that make up pari-mutuel betting, fixed odds is a form of betting in which the payout odds are set and agreed upon at the time the wager is placed. Crucially, they do not change. Among other aspects of the bill, it requires tracks and tote companies...

So-called prediction markets have become all the rage across a wide swath of topics, from election results to gas prices to the amount of snowfall might occur in a given place. The Kentucky Derby and horse racing at large? That topic was the subject of a panel entitled 'Prediction Markets and Wagering: An Emerging Threat To Horse Racing and Interstate Horseracing Act Revenue' during Thursday's session of the National HBPA Conference at Oaklawn Park. Speakers agreed that prediction markets have the ability to dwarf even sports betting in America. The...

The TDN has launched a prediction market, where voters "bet" on the outcomes of questions with virtual money and earn real money with their correct predictions to be donated to charity. The market was the idea of TDN writer J. N. Campbell. Several times a week, the TDN will pose a question in the TDN, on our website in a story post, and on social media, asking voters to predict the outcome of a particular story. We are using the platform Manifold, profiled in a New York Times story, The...