Churchill Downs Incorporated Announces Grand Opening for Marshall Yards Racing & Gaming
Rhea-AI Summary
Churchill Downs Incorporated (Nasdaq: CHDN) announced the grand opening of Marshall Yards Racing & Gaming on February 25, 2026. The 23,000 square foot facility in Southwestern Kentucky will feature 225 historical racing machines, a sports bar, simulcast and sports wagering, and multiple food and beverage options. Marshall Yards is CDI's eighth historical racing venue in Kentucky and will support purse funding for Oak Grove Racing, Gaming & Hotel.
Management said the venue is intended to create jobs, boost tourism, and strengthen Marshall County's economic vitality.
Positive
- None.
Negative
- None.
News Market Reaction
On the day this news was published, CHDN declined 2.90%, reflecting a moderate negative market reaction.
Data tracked by StockTitan Argus on the day of publication.
Key Figures
Market Reality Check
Peers on Argus
CHDN was down 0.57% pre-news. Peers showed mixed performance: SBET +5.16%, while SGHC -0.10%, LNW -4.20%, RSI -1.83%, and DKNG -6.80%. Scanner data flags SBET in downside momentum earlier, suggesting today’s setup was more stock-specific than a clean sector rotation.
Historical Context
| Date | Event | Sentiment | Move | Catalyst |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 12 | Casino redevelopment plans | Positive | -2.0% | Announced Rockingham Grand Casino redevelopment with sizable capex and gaming expansion. |
| Jan 07 | Earnings call schedule | Neutral | +2.0% | Set dates for Q4 and full-year 2025 results release and investor conference call. |
| Oct 22 | Racetrack growth project | Positive | -0.4% | Announced Victory Run premium seating project with significant capital investment at racetrack. |
| Oct 22 | Q3 2025 earnings | Positive | -0.4% | Reported record Q3 revenue and Adjusted EBITDA alongside an impairment-driven GAAP income decline. |
| Oct 08 | FinTech partnership deal | Positive | -1.6% | Entered seven-year FinTech services agreement to deploy payments and AML technology across properties. |
Recent growth and partnership news often coincided with flat-to-negative next-day moves, suggesting a tendency for muted or contrarian reactions to expansion headlines.
Over the last few months, CHDN has focused on growth and property upgrades. On Oct 22, 2025, it announced the Victory Run capital project at Churchill Downs Racetrack alongside record Q3 $683.0M net revenue and $262.3M Adjusted EBITDA, yet shares slipped modestly. A new seven-year FinTech relationship with Everi on Oct 8, 2025 also saw a negative move. More recently, CHDN detailed a major Rockingham Grand Casino redevelopment on Jan 12, 2026 and set its Feb 25–26, 2026 earnings release and call. Today’s Marshall Yards opening continues this capital investment and network-expansion theme.
Market Pulse Summary
This announcement adds another node to Churchill Downs’ live and historical racing network, introducing the Marshall Yards venue with 225 historical racing machines and a 23,000-square-foot footprint in Kentucky. It follows recent capital projects at Rockingham Grand and Victory Run, plus prior strategic partnerships. Investors may watch how new properties contribute to revenue, Adjusted EBITDA, and purse funding over coming quarters, as well as management’s commentary on returns and ramp-up during upcoming earnings calls.
Key Terms
historical racing machines technical
simulcast technical
sports wagering financial
AI-generated analysis. Not financial advice.
CDI’s Eighth Premier Historical Racing Entertainment Venue in Kentucky
LOUISVILLE, Ky., Jan. 20, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Churchill Downs Incorporated (“CDI” or “the Company”) (Nasdaq: CHDN) announced today that Marshall Yards Racing & Gaming (“Marshall Yards”) will celebrate its grand opening on February 25, 2026. Marshall Yards will be the Company’s eighth premier historical racing entertainment venue in Kentucky.
The 23,000 square foot state-of-the-art facility is located at the intersection of I-24 and I-69 in Southwestern Kentucky. Marshall Yards will have 225 historical racing machines (“HRMs”), a sports bar, simulcast and sports wagering, and several food and beverage options.
The new HRM entertainment venue will support purse funding for race meets at Oak Grove Racing, Gaming & Hotel in Oak Grove, Kentucky.
“Marshall Yards represents another important step in our commitment to grow Kentucky’s signature horse racing industry and deliver world-class entertainment experiences across the Commonwealth,” said Bill Carstanjen, CEO of CDI. “This investment will create new jobs, drive tourism, and strengthen the economic vitality of Marshall County and its surrounding communities.”
About Churchill Downs Incorporated
Churchill Downs Incorporated (“CDI”) (Nasdaq: CHDN) has been creating extraordinary entertainment experiences for over 150 years, beginning with the company’s most iconic and enduring asset, the Kentucky Derby. Headquartered in Louisville, Kentucky, CDI has expanded through the acquisition, development, and operation of live and historical racing entertainment venues, the growth of online wagering businesses, and the acquisition, development, and operation of regional casino gaming properties. www.churchilldownsincorporated.com
This news release contains various “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the “safe harbor” provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements are typically identified by the use of terms such as “anticipate,” “believe,” “could,” “estimate,” “expect,” “intend,” “may,” “might,” “plan,” “predict,” “project,” “seek,” “should,” “will,” “scheduled,” and similar words or similar expressions (or negative versions of such words or expressions), although some forward-looking statements are expressed differently.
Although we believe that the expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements are reasonable, we can give no assurance that such expectations will prove to be correct. Important factors, that could cause actual results to differ materially from expectations include the following: the occurrence of extraordinary events, such as terrorist attacks, public health threats, civil unrest, and inclement weather, including as a result of climate change; the effect of economic conditions on our consumers’ confidence and discretionary spending or our access to credit, including the impact of inflation; changes in, or new interpretations of, applicable tax laws or rulings that could result in additional tax liabilities; the impact of any pandemics, epidemics, or outbreaks of infectious diseases, and related economic matters on our results of operations, financial conditions and prospects; lack of confidence in the integrity of our core businesses or any deterioration in our reputation; negative shifts in public opinion regarding gambling that could result in increased regulation of, or new restrictions on, the gaming industry; loss of key or highly skilled personnel, as well as general disruptions in the general labor market; the impact of significant competition, and the expectation that competition levels will increase; changes in consumer preferences, attendance, wagering, and sponsorships; risks associated with equity investments, strategic alliances and other third-party agreements; inability to respond to rapid technological changes in a timely manner; concentration and evolution of slot machine and historical racing machine ("HRM") manufacturing and other technology conditions that could impose additional costs; failure to enter into or maintain agreements with industry constituents, including horsemen and other racetracks; inability to successfully focus on market access and retail operations for our sports betting business and effectively compete; online security risk, including cyber-security breaches, or loss or misuse of our stored information as a result of a breach including customers’ personal information could lead to government enforcement actions or other litigation; costs of compliance with increasingly complex laws and regulations regarding data privacy and protection of personal information; reliance on our technology services and catastrophic events and system failures disrupting our operations; inability to identify, complete, or fully realize the benefits of our proposed acquisitions, divestitures, development of new venues or the expansion of existing facilities on time, on budget, or as planned; difficulty in integrating recent or future acquisitions into our operations; cost overruns and other uncertainties associated with the development of new venues and the expansion of existing facilities; general risks related to real estate ownership and significant expenditures, including risks related to environmental liabilities; personal injury litigation related to injuries occurring at our racetracks; compliance with the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act or other similar laws and regulations, or applicable anti-money laundering regulations; payment-related risks, such as risk associated with fraudulent credit card or debit card use; work stoppages and labor problems; risks related to pending or future legal proceedings and other actions; highly regulated operations and changes in the regulatory environment could adversely affect our business; restrictions in our debt facilities limiting our flexibility to operate our business; failure to comply with the financial ratios and other covenants in our debt facilities and other indebtedness; increases to interest rates (due to inflation or otherwise); disruption in the credit markets or changes to our credit ratings may adversely affect our business; increase in our insurance costs, or inability to obtain similar insurance coverage in the future, and any inability to recover under our insurance policies for damages sustained at our properties in the event of inclement weather and casualty events; and other factors described under the heading “Risk Factors” in our most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K and in other filings we make with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
We do not undertake any obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by law.
| Investor Contact: Sam Ullrich | Media Contact: Jeanna Burkhead Cunningham | |
| (502) 638-3906 | (502) 678-5785 | |
| Sam.Ullrich@kyderby.com | Jeanna.Cunningham@kyderby.com |
FAQ
When will Churchill Downs (CHDN) open Marshall Yards Racing & Gaming?
What amenities will Marshall Yards near I-24 and I-69 offer for CHDN customers?
How does Marshall Yards affect Churchill Downs' footprint in Kentucky (CHDN)?
Will Marshall Yards support racing operations tied to Oak Grove for CHDN?
What economic impacts does Churchill Downs (CHDN) expect from Marshall Yards?
