Betfair Sets Foot On U.S. Horseracing Territory

Betting on horse races is still strictly regulated in the United States. While horse racing is not exactly taboo, it is by no means as “acceptable” as, say, shopping online. With the easing of gambling regulations in the U.S. though, it seems that there is hope in the horizon.

In fact, companies from other countries are capitalizing on this development. Betfair, a UK-based online betting company, has recently made moves to try its luck in the U.S. market. As early as January of this year, Betfair hedged its bets by buying TVG for $50 million.

TVG is a horseracing channel and Betfair aims to gain a foothold in the multimillion horseracing industry with it. In the last six weeks alone, Betfair has already added about 30 channels to the TVG line up. They are also offering an online service which will allow punters to watch any race on demand through their web site. More than that, they also are launching a new forum wherein TVG viewers can interact with one another. This is quite a significant feature as forums have the reputation for spurring on wagers.

For American horseracing enthusiasts, this piece of news can only be good. This could very well be the start of a bigger horseracing industry, with more people gaining access to the races and betting facilities as well. With Betfair aiming to operate in the U.S. for the long term, their vision of bringing America to the 21st century of horseracing might very well come true.