Arkansas Bans Greyhound Racing, Simulcasts

• Arkansas bans greyhound racing, becoming the 44th state overall.
• Simulcast betting on dog races will phase out by 2028.
• Advocates praise law, citing cruelty and declining industry trends.
  

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Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders signed a bill Tuesday to ban greyhound racing in the state and to prohibit simulcasts, which enable gamblers to bet on out-of-state and international races.

With Huckabee Sanders’ signature, Arkansas became the 44th state in America to ban the sport, which has been widely criticized due to concerns about animal welfare. It became the sixth state to outlaw simulcasting after Arizona, Colorado, Kansas, Massachusetts, and New Hampshire.

“Greyhound advocates everywhere applaud Governor Huckabee Sanders for signing this important bill,” said Christine A. Dorchak, President and General Counsel of GREY2K USA, an advocacy group for greyhound protection. “Arkansas will join 43 other states that have already rejected this outdated and inhumane form of gambling.”

Dwindling Popularity

Arkansas’ last greyhound track, Southland in West Memphis, officially ended dog racing in December 2022 after 66 years, as part of a phase-out agreement as it shifted its focus to casino gaming. Southland still offers simulcast betting and will have until 2028 to phase it out under the new law.

In its heyday in the late 1970s and early 1980s, the Southland track, as the only gambling venue in the Mid-South, would attract 10,000 to 12,000 regular racegoers. But with the rise in alternative opportunities to gamble and concerns about the treatment of race dogs, the sport has lost its appeal across the US.

State records indicate that 568 greyhounds were injured in 2023 at these two venies, including 181 dogs that suffered broken bones. Nine greyhounds died, GREY2K USA reports.

“Thousands of dogs also endure lives of confinement at West Virginia tracks, kept in cages barely large enough for them to stand up or turn around for long hours each day,” according to the advocacy group.

Florida’s Historic Ban

Florida, once the epicenter of the greyhound racing in America, discontinued the sport at the end of 2020. That’s after residents voted to amend the state constitution to ban betting on the sport. An overwhelming 69% of residents backed the amendment.

A bill to ban betting on greyhound racing nationwide was introduced in the 118^th Congress, earning the support of 80 cosponsors and more than 250 humane groups, anti-gambling organizations, and animal shelters.