CHICAGO (WBBM NEWSRADIO) — While racing at Arlington International Racecourse could return under a lease or new owners, the horses definitely will not run in the spring.
A deadline for the owner, Churchill Downs, to apply for race dates next year came and went on Friday. So whatever happens with the track, there won't be racing next summer.
The owners are weighing bids from the Chicago Bears, among others. And for now, Sept. 25 could be the final race day at Arlington.
Trainers and owners hoped the track would at least apply for dates and, the Chicago Sun-Times reported, they slammed what they called the corporation's campaign to sabotage future gaming opportunities at Arlington.
Mike Campbell, the president of the Illinois Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association, said in a statement, Churchill Downs is writing the book on bad faith so this latest move is disappointing but not surprising.
Churchill Downs also owns Rivers Casino in Des Plaines. And the company passed on an opportunity to add slots and table games at Arlington, a so-called "racino" that would have competed with Rivers.
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