Circa Sports KY officially launches!

From left, Marc Falcone, Ron Winchell and Derek Stevens with the ceremonial ribbon cutting to officially launch Circa Sports KY. Circa Sports photo

Read Circa Sports’ event recap

Videos:

Ribbon cutting and remarks by emcee Steve Thurmond, Johan Mirkovic, Derek Stevens, Mike Palm, Franklin Mayor Larry Dixon and Simpson County Judge Executive Mason Barnes

Post-event remarks by Ron Winchell and Marc Falcone

Mike Palm, Circa Sports VP operations

Former KY Rep. Adam Koenig

FRANKLIN, Ky. (Wednesday, Aug. 20, 2025) — Circa Sports and The Mint Gaming Hall Kentucky Downs launched a new way to watch sports Wednesday with the ceremonial grand opening of Circa Sports Kentucky.

The 5,100-square foot sportsbook, part of The Mint’s 18,000-square foot expansion, is one of the largest east of the Mississippi. Circa Sports Kentucky features an 80-foot-wide LED screen, 31-foot-wide odds board, premium seating, a live VSiN broadcast studio and staffed betting counters and kiosks. A 112-foot ticker, with team logos, runs below the massive video boards that Circa helped design with DAK Electronics, the world’s leading designer and manufacturer of large-screen LED displays.

Civic leaders including Franklin Mayor Larry Dixon and Simpson County Judge Executive Mason Barnes joined Circa Sports CEO and owner Derek Stevens and The Mint properties/Kentucky Downs racetrack managing partners Ron Winchell and Marc Falcone and others in celebrating the official opening of the unique entertainment and wagering option now available for sports enthusiasts. Representatives of the Kentucky Horse Racing and Gaming Corporation also were on hand.

The event started with a ceremonial ribbon cutting overseen by Franklin-Simpson Chamber of Commerce executive director Steve Thurmond. The sportsbook had a soft launch at the end of July.

Circa Sports Kentucky was designed to allow guests to feel like they are at a sporting event — but without the ticket cost or traffic and with easy access to wagering. Sports fans also can come watch pay-per-view events and all the NFL and other pro games without having to go into their pocket for all the streaming services.

“This transcends any experience today in Kentucky from a sports-betting perspective,” Falcone said. “We made a commitment to build a first-class facility here with Circa Sports. And after spending a lot of time with Derek and his facility in Las Vegas, we thought it was a good match not only for our mutual partnership but for them coming into the state of Kentucky.

“We’re going to build one of the greatest, unique sports-watching experiences in the Midwest. With football coming up, and we just had our first UFC fight we showed here, we’ll have significant interest in college and professional football, moving into playoffs in baseball and then right into hockey and basketball. This will be, by far, the best place to watch and bet on any live sporting event in Kentucky and Tennessee.”

Said Winchell: “It’s the vision that Derek had of making this the sports hub of the Midwest. It’s not the sports hub of Franklin, Ky., or Bowling Green or Nashville. The border is beyond that. It’s not a big financial gain from sports betting; it’s bringing people to Kentucky and to the property. That’s the most important thing. It’s going to do stuff from marketing that we can’t do, because people from hundreds of miles away recognize what this is. Circa built the best sportsbook in Las Vegas. No matter where you stay in Vegas, they come to Circa for sports. We’re hoping that happens here for all the Midwest.”

Stevens said he wanted to build a hub sportsbook in the Midwest, with suburban Chicago under consideration. But also at that time, he was advised to hook up with Falcone and Winchell and see what they had created in Franklin. That was two years ago.

“I came here, and where we’re standing right now was kind of a dirt parking lot,” Stevens said. “Ron and Marc explained to me their vision of what they wanted to do. Frankly, I was so impressed with what they’d done with The Mint. I was impressed with the growth of Kentucky Downs and the race meet. And then I became very, very enamored with the regulatory environment. If it weren’t for a great regulatory environment, a low tax rate and meeting a couple of great, great people and we were told how great this community was, we wouldn’t be here today.”

Former Kentucky state representative Adam Koenig, who pushed sports betting for years in the General Assembly, was recognized at the event.

“Without his work through the years, none of us would be here today,” said Mike Palm, Circa Sports vice president for operations.

While Wednesday’s event was geared to the media and civic leaders, Circa Sports Kentucky is staging a grand opening for fans this Saturday from 11 a.m. until 7 p.m. Central. Among the festivities will be a $250 deposit match bonus, a drawing for a reserved booth in the sportsbook for all 18 weeks of the NFL regular-season and a Watch Party for Western Kentucky’s home football opener Saturday with Sam Houston State.

Circa Sports Kentucky’s hours are 9 a.m.-10 p.m. Central Monday-Thursday and Friday-Sunday 9 a.m.-11 p.m. Guests must be at least 21 to enter Circa Sports Kentucky and The Mint Gaming Hall, though betting on the Circa Sports app is available to Kentucky residents who are at least 18.

The Mint Gaming Hall Kentucky Downs also opened a Pie Rollers pizza parlor as part of the sportsbook complex, featuring New York-style pizza sold by the slice or the whole pie.

The Mint Gaming Kentucky Downs’ latest makeover includes the Midnight Bourbon Bar on the expanded gaming floor and a renovated second-floor simulcast area that should be open in time for the live meet that begins Aug. 28, featuring the Bit and Barrel Gaming and Racing Lounge, the VIP Onyx Lounge for top-tier players, cozy carrel seating and a non-smoking zone.

Since a partnership headed by Falcone and Winchell purchased Kentucky Downs in 2019, the main structure has grown from 84,928 square feet to 154,847. That includes more than doubling the size of the gaming floor, building the SpringHill Suites Franklin Mint hotel, The Mint Event Center and Irons Steakhouse.

Kentucky Downs’ live race meet runs August 28, 30 and 31 and September 4, 6, 7 and 10, offering among the richest purses in the world.