Circa Sports Continuing Expansion with Launch of Sportsbook at Mint Kentucky Downs

^{The new sportsbook at Mint Gaming Hall Kentucky Downs features a massive LED viewing wall and gives bettors the option to wager at betting counters or electronic kiosks. (Photo: courtesy of Circa Sports)}

Circa Sports has announced the opening of its live retail sportsbook in Mint Gaming Hall Kentucky Downs later this month, adding another major expansion of the company’s operations in the United States.

The sportsbook at Mint Kentucky Downs officially opened on Aug. 12, with a grand opening celebration scheduled for Wednesday, Aug. 20.

Circa Sports Going Big Beyond Vegas

The new sportsbook is the largest in Kentucky, featuring an 80-foot LED viewing wall and over 5,100 square feet of space. Bettors can wager via self-service kiosks or at betting counters, and there’s a live VSiN broadcast studio on site.

Circa Sports CEO Derek Stevens hailed the opening as the latest sign of his company’s increasing footprint beyond Las Vegas.

“Opening Circa Sports at The Mint Gaming Hall Kentucky Downs marks a bold step in our mission to deliver top-tier sportsbook experiences outside of Nevada,” Stevens said. 

“From day one, our goal was to create a space that channels the energy of Las Vegas while celebrating the rich sports culture of Kentucky and the surrounding region," he further explained. "We’ve built a true sports destination that offers an unmatched viewing and betting experience and serves as a home base for fans – whether they’re placing a wager or just taking in the action.”

The grand opening ceremony will include a formal ribbon cutting as well as remarks from Stevens and other officials from both Circa and The Mint Gaming Hall. On Friday, Aug. 22, the sportsbook will also host a meet and greet with On3 college football insider Brett McMurphy.

Circa Sports Now Active in Five States

Circa Sports launched in Las Vegas in 2019, but quickly expanded its operations beyond Nevada. In 2020, it opened its first online sportsbook in another state, doing so in Colorado in partnership with Century Casinos. Further online operations were launched in Iowa in 2021 with Wild Rose Casino, Illinois (in partnership with Full House Resorts ) in 2023, and in Kentucky last year alongside the Cumberland Run racetrack. 

But Circa’s expansion hasn’t been limited to online sports betting. In May 2022, the company opened its first physical sportsbook outside of Nevada in Waukegan, Illinois. The Mint Kentucky Downs facility adds to that portfolio of land-based operations.

The location is also a strategic one. The Mint Gaming Hall is located near the Tennessee border, and is just 35 miles from Nashville, giving it a large population base of bettors who don’t have a land-based betting option in their state, as Tennessee has only legalized online betting. 

“We’re excited about the growth potential,” Stevens told Yogonet in 2024. “There’s going to be a tremendous amount of wagering actions coming out of Kentucky because it’s such a hotbed of sports for baseball, for basketball, for football.”

The Mint Gaming Hall Kentucky Downs also offers historical horse racing terminals and simulcasting from across the United States. However the Kentucky Downs track still hosts seven days of live racing each summer on the only “European-style” turf racetrack in the USA.