Horse Racing Betting in Utah: Laws & Best Options in the Beehive State

Can You Bet on Horse Racing in Utah?

Utah is one of only two states that ban all gambling outright. The prohibition is written into the state constitution, so there is no racetrack, no betting app and no legal horse wagering of any kind.

That stance has been tightening rather than loosening — recent legislation and court rulings have reinforced the ban — so there is no legal route to bet the horses from Utah.

Horse Racing & Betting in Utah

No racetrack — Utah has never had legal pari-mutuel racing.

Online wagering is not legal — all gambling is banned under the state constitution, so no betting app or racebook serves Utah.

There is no legal horse-race betting in Utah.

More on Racing in Utah

They love their horse racing in Utah, of that there is no doubt. Considering that the sport has survived in the area for over 140 years without any form of wagering offered on Utah horse racing, they’d have to love the game to stay in the game.

Utah horse people are diehards, people say. They make a go of it every year without drawing any revenue from pari-mutuel wagering. There is some level of government funding that supports horse racing. The Utah Department of Agriculture and Food provides $90,000 for overnight purses Mostly, though in Utah horse racing, they survive by going door to door, garnering sponsorship money to pay for the costs of racing in the state.

Horse Racing History

A 2019 bill designed to give individual counties the right to decide whether they wanted to allow pari-mutuel wagering on horse racing in their area failed to get backing in state government circles.

Horse racing in the state of Utah dates back to the early 1880s. In those days, harness racing was the prominent form of horse racing. Today, quarter horse racing dominates the Utah landscape. Two tracks – Laurel Brown Racetrack in South Jordan and Weber Downs in Ogden – offer race dates. A third track, Dixie Downs in Hurricane, closed its doors in 1995.

One of the most famous Utah horse owners and trainers was Gene Fullmer. Fullmer, who died in 2015, reigned as world middleweight boxing champion in 1957 and again from 1959-62.

Prominent races in Utah include the $95,000 Beehive Futurity and the $88,268 Hadley-Giles Futurity.

How to Bet on Horse Racing

New to the windows? Start with the straight bets. A win bet needs your horse to finish first; place pays if it runs first or second; show pays for first, second or third. They are the cheapest way to learn the game.

From there come the exotics, where the real payouts live. The exacta asks for the first two home in order, the trifecta the first three, and the superfecta the first four. Multi-race bets — the daily double, Pick 3, Pick 4 and Pick 6 — string winners together across races, and the Pick 6 jackpot can roll into life-changing money. Our guide to exotic bets walks through each one, and the beginner’s guide to betting on racing covers the basics end to end.

Utah Horse Racing Betting FAQs