Letter from National HBPA CEO: We All Must Defend Horse Racing’s Future

The first quarter of 2025 has been nothing short of a tsunami for most of us in the industry.

We entered the year with hopes of turning the page, making positive strides and setting the industry on the right path. Then came January 7. While the events of that date didn’t bring our industry to a standstill, they certainly caused an unexpected stumble—one that no one saw coming or wanted to face.

Seemingly without warning, industry press announced an agreement between the owner of Gulfstream Park and the Gulfstream horsemen’s association to jointly support legislation allowing Gulfstream to decouple. “Decouple” is a word with multiple meanings, but to horsemen, it tends to be followed by concern—and expletives. The proposed bill in Tallahassee would allow Gulfstream to operate its casino without any obligation to conduct live racing. Ownership claimed this move was necessary to secure financing for improvements to the Gulfstream property. (Pause, smile and cue more expletives. Next, start taking steps to defend the future of racing, not only in Florida but across the country.)

This renewed push to decouple Thoroughbred racing is now underway, and by the time this letter goes to print, the industry’s pushback will be well in motion. But the fight is far from over. The Florida Legislature introduced House Bill 105, filed by Rep. Adam Anderson, which effectively redlined existing statutes requiring Thoroughbred racing facilities to host live races as a condition for operating slot machines and card rooms. Let’s not forget: These gaming operations were not a given; they were made possible only because they were tied to horse racing. The facilities benefiting from gaming revenue rode in on the backs of horsemen and women.

Within hours—also on January 7—I issued a statement making it clear that the National HBPA cannot currently support Gulfstream’s requested legislative changes. The NHBPA, along with its affiliates—including the Tampa Bay HBPA—emphasized that these changes do not appear to offer any meaningful benefits for horsemen. Across the country, horsemen agreed: Decoupling from live racing threatens to cripple horse racing in any state.

If there is one key takeaway from this issue’s letter, it is this: Our industry is not subsidized by gaming. Gaming companies and permit holders pay horsemen a tariff—a tax—for the privilege of having entered states where horse racing already laid the groundwork for legalized wagering. Without the existence of pari-mutuel betting, states would never have allowed these gaming companies to set up shop, whether in brick-and-mortar casinos or, going further back to my younger days, the riverboats of Shreveport.

Every trainer, every farm and every training center is a small business. These businesses collectively drive a multibillion-dollar agricultural sector in the United States. Decoupling must be stopped—not just in Florida but wherever it threatens our industry’s future.

I also want to address a recent opinion piece published in the New York Times. Written by Noah Shachtman, the piece attempted to couch horse racing in the U.S. as a sport that has outlived its economic usefulness and should simply disappear. My issue with this opinion piece? Like so many before it, it relied on exaggeration, misinformation and a lack of factual evidence to push an anti-racing narrative, so much so that it is hard to even address.

Like everyone I know who read the article, I looked down, shook my head and felt frustrated. We are all tired of seeing our sport mischaracterized in the mainstream media. Fortunately, I believe that hit pieces like this are losing traction. Why? Because they continue to ignore the facts.

You’ve probably heard the old saying, “Never let the truth get in the way of a good story.” The author of this article certainly didn’t. His criticism focused on the idea that racetracks and purse money are “subsidized” by revenue from slot machines, casinos or historical horse racing machines. Sound familiar? See above. What he conveniently left out was the fundamental fact that these gaming organizations were only allowed to establish themselves because of coupled legislation with horse racing.

Even more glaring was his omission of the economic impact of horse racing—the tens of thousands of jobs it provides, the breeding farms, the training centers and the vast network of agribusinesses and supporting industries that depend on it.

I’ll step off my soapbox before I get too fired up, but this needs to be said: Our industry is not dying. And I am glad the relentless attacks from the media are not resonating the way they used to. From coast to coast, horsemen and women remain deeply committed to this sport.

That said, the New York Times article should serve as a call to action. We must continue to respond—with facts, with passion and with personal testimonies about what racing means to us.

Horse racing is more than a sport; it is a way of life. It is a vital industry with real economic significance in the United States. And it is worth defending and fighting for.

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