Louisiana May Be Next State to Adopt Fixed Odds Horse Racing

Horse racing is known for its dynamic odds, parimutuel wagering, where the odds don’t settle until the race goes off. However, a recent push to bring fixed odds to the Sport of Kings has started to gain momentum, and Louisiana may be the next state to adopt this new way to bet on horses at some online sportsbooks.

Making Horse Racing More Attractive

Horse racing attracts an older demographic, but thanks to online betting, more and more people now have access to it, even if their interest wanes after the Triple Crown is over.

Nevertheless, horse racing apps are a direct connection with the younger generation, but parimutuel wagering is often foreign to them. Not knowing the odds until the race goes is unsettling for some younger bettors who are accustomed to being informed of their odds the moment they lock in a bet—think sports betting.

But fixed-odds horse racing has already arrived, and two states, Colorado and New Jersey, have already passed legislation to adopt it and currently allow it. West Virginia lawmakers have already passed fixed-odds legislation earlier this year, and Louisiana may be the fourth state to do so.

Modernizing the Odds

Republican Representative Chad Boyer is the author of Bill 547, which would allow fixed-odds horse betting in the Bayou State. He believes fixed odds are a “more predictable and attractive alternative” to parimutuel wagering, which has been the traditional method of designating odds on horses.

“Fixed-odds betting is already gaining traction in other states, [and] allows a wager to be locked in at the posted odds, much like sports betting,” Boyer told the committee members. “By adopting this model, we not only offer a more competitive product to racing fans, but we also create a new revenue stream that will directly support our local racing associations through a dedicated purse supplemental fund.”

A Generational Divide

The swell of support mobile sports betting has received in Louisiana and dozens of other states has attracted millions of customers, all of whom wager on sporting events with either the point spread or odds locked in the moment they make the wager. The lines or odds may go up or down after the wager, but once a bet is made, that’s the price the bettor gets, regardless of where it goes after that.

However, parimutuel wagering doesn’t lock the price until all the bets are in and the race begins. In other words, the horse bettor doesn’t know exactly what odds they will have until the buzzer sounds, indicating the beginning of the race. That is markedly dissonant from sports betting, and lobbyists like Jake Delhomme want horse racing to feel more accessible to the younger generation that has made mobile sports betting such a roaring success.

The House Commerce Committee unanimously approved HB 547, and now the measure advances to the House’s appropriations committee, where it will be heard this week.