Nebraska's horse racing industry declined for decades. Casino revenue is helping revive the storied industry

A few decades back, money wasn’t an issue in Nebraska’s horse racing industry. Ak-Sar-Ben in Omaha was king in the 1980s. In 1983, average attendance placed it among the top 10 tracks in the country, according to a website that aims to preserve its history.

But in 1995, Ak-Sar-Ben closed. As the years passed, horse racing faded into the background of the state’s cultural profile, though places like Fonner Park in Grand Island found a way to keep the lights on.

Now more than five years after casino gambling was approved by voters and nearly four years since the state’s first off-reservation casino opened in Lincoln, operators, trainers, jockeys and horse breeders say there are signs of life.

‘Nebraska’s springtime tradition’

After hopping out of the winner’s circle at Fonner Park, jockey Alex Birzer talked about his 34-year journey racing horses.

“I’m Alex Birzer and I ride fast horses,” Birzer said, introducing himself. “I've rode just a hair over 26,000 races, and we're probably sitting at 4,020 wins, 4,030 — something like that.”

He’s raced all across the country, but Nebraska has drawn him back. The state holds a special place in Birzer’s heart. It’s where he met his wife in the 1990s. The return now is extra sweet given the improving purse money — and the fans.

“As far as the patrons go, Nebraska's top notch,” Birzer said. “ I mean, it's just amazing to have the people come out and support us the way they do. The little kids standing along this chain link fence, giving you a high five, coming back. I mean, it just brings a tear to your eye, because there's so many tracks across the nation you just don't see that in anymore.”

The total amount of purse money is going up at Horsemen’s Park in Omaha and Legacy Downs in Lincoln, but Fonner Park writes the biggest checks today. In 2025, Fonner paid out twice as much as the second-highest track.

Patrons may be the best in Nebraska, but they aren’t betting as much as they used to, particularly for interstate races.

Last year, just under $41 million was bet on racing at Nebraska’s tracks, a number that’s down more than 35% since 2018, according to Nebraska Racing and Gaming Commission data.

However, the total amount of money wagered during the state’s live meets increased to the highest number since 2017.

Bets made on out-of-state races make up a majority of the horse betting handle in Nebraska. Handle is a term used to describe the total amount of money wagered or “handled” by the track for a race. Of the money handled, a certain amount goes to the winning bettors, while the rest is used for track expenses like purse money, staff wages and tax payments.

The main way purse money is going up — at least at Fonner Park — is because of the deal inked between Fonner and Grand Island Casino and Resort. Some of the casino’s revenue eventually finds its way into the hands of winning horse breeders, regardless of whether they trained the colt or not. That’s according to breeders like Pat O’Neill. His family has been in the industry for a while.

“My mom and sister have been in thoroughbred breeding for probably 20-25 years,” O’Neill said, “and there's a lot of years you got to have a really good horse just to make your money back.”

Like other breeders, O’Neill has a chance to make money at Fonner with the way its purse money is divvied up these days.

“And now, you're getting to the point where a decent horse, not only is it easier to find races, but you can actually make some money at those races,” O’Neill said.

He won a race in mid-April, and won part of a $16,000 prize. If a horse wins two races in a year, O’Neill said that could offset that horse’s total cost for the year. That’s a big change. About a decade ago, he said the best purses were less than $8,000 per race.

Other breeders have noticed the changes, too, like Margaret Landis and her husband. They’ve been breeding horses in Nebraska for 40 years.

“We never gave up. And I think the breeding program in Nebraska is really taking off,” Landis said. “We can thank Fonner Park and the casino, because they're actually funding the breeders, and it's really helping, and we're getting more Nebraska-bred races than we've ever had before.”

How did they survive all those years? Well, Landis said her husband was a doctor and a good one at that.

“He was excellent,” Landis said. “He was a track physician, too.”

Agreements between racetracks and the state’s five casinos are different from place to place. In Grand Island, part of the casino revenue goes back to horse racing, with winning breeders getting a chunk of the prize money. And dollars in the pockets of Nebraska horse breeders is important for the health of the Nebraska horseracing industry. Breeders, trainers and racetrack operators preach one simple tenet: No local horses, no local horse racing economy.

State law requires 1% of all horse betting handle to go to the Nebraska Thoroughbred Breeders Association. But some stakeholders say any future advancement of gambling in the state should include a cut to the local horse breeding industry. O’Neill explained the importance of local breeding and racing Nebraska-bred horses.

“It's a win-win, because those horses are born and raised in Nebraska, so you're buying all the feed, you're buying all the hay, and the straw, bedding, manure,” O’Neill said. “It's a big economic circle that really helps the entire industry.”

Fonner Park Chief Executive Officer Chris Kotulak said half of the money his racetrack gets from the casino goes to the horsemen.

Of those dollars, “80% goes to purse money or the HBPA (Nebraska Horsemen’s Benevolent and Protective Association),” Kotulak said, “and the other 20% goes to the NTBA, the Nebraska Thoroughbred Breeders Association, to use in purse money or breeders awards.”

But he said other tracks and the state as a whole could chip in, with more money awarded to horse breeders.

“Somehow they need to figure out a way to develop the infrastructure for Nebraska thoroughbred racehorse breeding,” Kotulak said.

He said that if casino gambling further expands with the addition of online sports betting — something supporters are aiming to get on the November ballot via a petition drive — some of that money should go back to horse tracks.

“If there is going to be a proliferation of sports gaming, then I'm only an advocate for it if we can get something tied into the thoroughbred horse racing industry,” Kotulak said.

Racing in Lincoln

In far southwest Lincoln, three new barns at Legacy Downs stand in the shadows of a refurbished race track. Robert Haar, a trainer from South Dakota, laments how the lack of local horse breeding spelled the demise of the industry in his home state.

“It was a slow death until racing was gone,” Haar said. “So, I think just keep promoting your breed program.”

New tracks, like the one built last year in Ogallala, are pretty rare across the country, Haar said. Purse money has gone up, but Haar said it’s still tough for the little guy, given the shorter racing season.

“Can a guy make a living this way, the way the races are set up now? Yeah, you can,” Haar said. “You got to have 40 horses, but these five-week meets just aren't going to be enough long term.

“This is not going to be something that is sustainable horsemen-wise,” Haar said, “and this is why we've seen over the years the horse population decreased like this.”

Still, Haar is considering renting out space at the new barns in Lincoln after the Legacy Downs season. He could stay through the summer and drive up to Omaha’s races.

Despite the short seasons, it’s an improvement. From 2021 to this year, the number of live race days in Nebraska has grown by more than 60%, according to the Nebraska Racing and Gaming Commission.

Lori Thomas manages Legacy Downs in Lincoln and Horsemen’s Park in Omaha. Though growth isn’t as fast as some people in the industry would like, Thomas said data shows things are looking up.

“We were running one-furlong races on a track, and we're proud to say we bumped up to four race days in 2024,” Thomas said. “We went to 15 in 2025. This year we're running 11, but we're running more races per day.”

Omaha will also be running more races this year, she said.

The amount of money wagered at her tracks has been strong, Thomas said.

The two tracks don’t pay out money directly to breeders for their horse winning a race like Fonner does, but she said 1% of the total amount wagered goes back to horse breeders in the state, as required by state law. And Omaha and Lincoln are contributing a big chunk of that, especially for interstate horse betting.

As for why jockeys like Birzer in Grand Island notice a difference in Nebraska patrons, she said “it's because Nebraskans have been raised up in the sport. They grew up watching it. They grew up going to the Ak-Sar-Ben, the junior jockey club,” Thomas said.

In the winner’s circle in Grand Island, Birzer was once that kid in the junior jockey club. He fell in love with horse racing from the jump.

“It's more of a disease once you get in it, and it gets in your blood. You can't — it's hard to get away from it,” Birzer said.

Even though the seasoned jockey won the race, he won’t be looking at the purse money before putting his hat in the ring next time. Apparently, that's bad luck.