FanDuel TV, a longtime fixture in North American horse racing television coverage, plans to sharply reduce television coverage this year and will eliminate broadcasting racing on television by 2027, according to Paulick Report.
News of its wind-down shocked employees during a March 27 video meeting with FanDuel TV executives. The reduction is expected to impact more than 100 employees, according to Paulick Report.
Andrew Moore, general manager of racing for FanDuel, told Paulick Report this move "was not an easy decision" but that "FanDuel conducted a thorough review of the business, and the investments needed to support a linear network didn't align with its long-term strategy."
According to Paulick Report, FanDuel TV will reduce its workforce by about 60% at the end of June, after honoring commitments to Keeneland and Triple Crown coverage. The remaining employees will continue through the end of November.
"Fans will continue to see all the same races with the same coverage they are accustomed to throughout the entire Triple Crown season," Moore said.
Beginning in December and continuing throughout 2027, there will be no in-studio production, he added. FanDuel TV will broadcast racing with feeds from its track partners.
The FanDuel Racing and TVG account deposit wagering platforms will continue to operate. FanDuel remains one of the market leaders in advance-deposit wagering.
The loss will be felt in the sport's television exposure and perhaps in handle. FanDuel TV currently reaches about 30 million households.
The network—formerly known as TVG before its rebrand—has served for more than two decades as a central hub for live racing broadcasts, wagering insights, and on-site reporting from venues across the country. The planned closure signals a notable contraction in the sport's daily media footprint.
"It's pretty surreal because, having been on the network when it launched, you just never thought it would come as far as it has to only come to a halt," said Caton Bredar, one of TVG's first hosts and now a freelance broadcaster who contributes to FanDuel TV. "I think it makes you remember how lucky you are to have had that opportunity—I mean, to get paid to do this. It's truly a dream job, and it's just sad that, like everything, it's gonna come to an end."
As TVG, the station initially launched in 1999 in Kentucky, Maryland, and Oregon. A December 1999 BloodHorse feature on the network noted that, despite differing ideas about which tracks were being presented and the tone of the broadcasts, racing was getting to tell its story in an unprecedented fashion, thanks to a channel fully devoted to horse racing.
"The features should transcend the segments of the audience," said then TVG executive producer Tony Allevato, now chief revenue officer and president for NYRA Bets. "If a person who goes to the races can't get into the story, or if his friend who rarely goes doesn't want to watch it, we're doing something wrong because it's all about entertainment."
Allevato is among those responsible for New York racing's current television presence through its partnership with FOX Sports. The Belmont Stakes (G1) and some other big days air on the main network, with most daily racing on its secondary FS1 and FS2 channels.
The United Kingdom-based Betfair bought TVG in 2009, and it was rebranded as FanDuel TV in 2022 after Betfair later merged with other betting companies as part of Flutter Entertainment. Flutter Entertainment's stock has dropped more than 64% over the past six months. Sports betting remains the core business at FanDuel.
Moore did not respond to a request from BloodHorse for an interview and further comment. A spokesperson for a public relations firm representing FanDuel said Moore was not planning any additional interviews, nor was the company planning to issue a press release or statement beyond what has been already reported.
Details surrounding the transition remain limited. The network began its on-site coverage of racing at Oaklawn Park March 27 without mention of the upcoming changes to its television audience.
Widespread television coverage of racing and on-site reporting have been widely viewed as key contributors to increases in wagering.
"There are groups of fans right now that don't know a time without TVG or FanDuel," Bredar said. "And I get that we have FOX, and I think FOX is great to have, but that's just a portion of the tracks and the coverage. I mean, this would be as if the Golf Channel decided to pack up, or Major League Baseball Network decided to call it a day.
"It just makes you wonder who is going to step up to try to fill that void, because if you don't, it will have been such a waste of all the work and the effort to build the network and build the following."
