Circa Plans Kentucky Downs Retail Location

Circa Sports, owner of one of the best retail legal sports betting experiences on the Vegas Strip, is planning to bring its second-to-none in-person wagering experience at one of the best sportsbooks to Kentucky after a deal with Kentucky Downs.

Circa Sports is already licensed in the Bluegrass State for mobile sports betting and is among the online betting sites there thanks to its partnership with ECL Corbin at the Cumberland Run harness track and The Mint Gaming Hall Cumberland, owner of Kentucky Downs, where Circa plans to launch its incredible retail sports betting brand.

Most of the headlines in the U.S. legal sports betting industry are reserved for the mobile wing of the business and the best sports betting apps. But Circa is attempting to make news on the retail side with its brick-and-mortar sportsbook plans for Kentucky sports betting.

The move to Kentucky Downs

Circa Sports obviously has an interest in Kentucky. Along with its still-to-be-determined Kentucky sports betting apps launch, the Nevada Independent is reporting the sports betting provider is planning a retail location at Kentucky Downs, the second-most successful horse racing track in the Bluegrass State. From there, bettors would be able to take advantage of Kentucky sportsbook promos.

There's still some work to do before a brick-and-mortar facility does indeed launch at Kentucky Downs, including applying for and receiving a license from the very busy Kentucky Horse Racing Commission.

What Circa brings to the Kentucky table

Circa has long been lauded for its ability to keep sports front-and-center with the company's legal wagering brand. That sports-first focus is what the book uses to set itself apart. The company offers what is billed as the world's largest retail sportsbook, with sports immersion the main goal of the betting experience.

“Sports betting can’t be like your eighth or ninth priority. It has to be a top priority for your business because this is an intensely competitive landscape," Circa Sports owner Derek Stevens said in an interview last week.

The company's flagship location in Las Vegas boasts 1,000 seats with a 143-foot LED screen and videoboard, and countless other TVs to give its customers a full experience. That location is also home to the 4,000-person capacity "Stadium Swim."

Circa's Nevada location is truly like nothing in the broad and expansive U.S. legal sports betting market.

The company claims to provide the best pricing and top betting options available in the American market. Better odds and better limits make the company somewhat unique in the U.S. sports betting landscape.

“What we do differently than others is provide value to the wagering consumer,” Derek Stevens said. “We don't limit customers and we take big bets. We run our own model.”

"Our philosophy is that we are looking to provide customers with value every day they bet with us, not just the first week,” Circa Sports director of operations Jeffrey Benson said.

Part of the bigger plan

Circa Sports has been somewhat aggressive in getting its brand out there most recently. Active in the Las Vegas market since 2019, Circa has since expanded outside of Nevada to Colorado and Iowa, where the book is managing to gain a respectable market share.

Just last week, Circa Sportsbook officially launched in Illinois as one of the eight Illinois sports betting apps. Illinois was the fourth state Circa Sports has launched in so far, with Kentucky coming soon.

Kentucky has been on the Circa Sports radar for some time, although the sportsbook doesn't hold an official presence there yet. The company was one of just eight to gain an official sports betting license in the Bluegrass State, but it failed to launch a mobile brand when Kentucky sports betting apps went live on Sept. 28. The debut in Kentucky isn't far off, and it could be coming in the next couple of weeks.

Kentucky will be the fifth state for Circa Sports, but it likely won't be the last. Expect to hear more from Circa Sports in the near future. It appears the company's expansion plans are real and will coincide with the rapid growth of the U.S. legal sports betting industry.