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| Published On May 25, 2022 2:18 am CEST  |  Updated on May 26, 2022 2:35 am CEST | By iGaming Team

Has Greyhound Betting Finally Gone to the Dogs in America?

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In the UK, sports like horse racing and association football (soccer) are generally considered amongst the oldest ever to be contested.

However, that overlooks the fact that the first greyhound racing meeting dates back to the 1870s, which would make this particular sport one of the earliest founded at a professional level.

While, in the UK, an evening at the dogs is popular. There are still tracks in operation that allow punters to have a bet on greyhound racing and soak up the atmosphere of a race meeting. The English Greyhound Derby, hosted by a rejuvenated Towcester Stadium, is the perfect case in point. There are also virtual greyhound races available, which could be a good option in the US, considering the current state of the sport there.

For all that commitment to the sport in the UK, the end is well and truly imminent for greyhound racing and betting in America. Today, just two tracks in the whole country are now playing host to races.

Iowa is the latest to fall, with the announcement that the 2022 season would be the last at the Iowa Greyhound Park in Dubuque – that closure was attributed to the ‘overall collapse of the racing industry’. Bettors will be hard hit, as this was a venue that saw a ‘sizable increase’ in wagers from those based in different states able to access legal online betting markets.

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It follows the revelation back in December that the last track standing in Arkansas was set to close. The Southland Park Gaming and Racing facility in West Memphis had been open since 1956, and as recently as 2019 there were more than 6,000 races held there annually.

Dave Wolf, the general manager at Southland, believes that an appetite for other gambling activities has contributed to his venue’s shift away from racing. “It has continued to shrink over the years. The greyhounds appeal to an older clientele,” he said. “There’s really no new blood. They’re gravitating to other forms of gambling, like casinos, sportsbook and other things. Quicker things. Those folks are moving on and nobody’s replacing them.”

All of which just leaves West Virginia, and their tracks in the Cross Lanes and Wheeling, as the last bastions of greyhound racing in the United States.

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Black Clouds in the Sunshine State

Greyhound enthusiasts believe that the downfall of the sport began after the turn of the 21st century, when state leaders started to outlaw dog racing as a viable form of entertainment.

In the 1980s, there were more than 50 greyhound tracks across 19 states, with a sizable glut of those in Florida – as many as 20, in fact. The Derby Lane venue in St. Petersburg was one of the oldest venues in North America, while Miami, Jacksonville, and Tampa were just three of the Sunshine State’s cities to have a facility to call their own.

However, that would all change in 2018 when voters decided to approve an amendment to the constitution that effectively banned greyhound racing across Florida – that was enacted at the end of the 2020 campaign.

Most tellingly, revenue from greyhound betting fell from around $3.5 billion in 1991 to $500 million two decades later – a sure sign that the desire amongst patrons to enjoy the sport had significantly waned.

And so one of America’s oldest sports is hanging on by its fingernails. How long will it be before greyhound racing is consigned to the past altogether?

Tags: US Sports