California law enforcement officials have eliminated new playing machines from Santa Anita Park simply days after they had been first put in.
The horse-racing location put in 26 new playing machines on January 14, just for them to be eliminated by law enforcement officials from the state Division of Justice and the town of Arcadia. The brand new machines had been met with immediate controversy, as they had been thought-about to be in breach of California’s unique tribal gaming rights legal guidelines.
The Racing On Demand machines will gather cash for reside bets, a service that’s unique to California tribes. Solely horse racing is exempt from these legal guidelines, which means that slot or playing machines of every other sort are usually not allowed.
Santa Anita Park launched the video games on February 14, reasoning that regulatory approval was in reality granted again in April 2024, when the California Horse Racing Board handed an settlement on 3-on-3 wagering. That enables gamblers to choose three successful horses, successful payouts at completely different ranges relying on how lots of the three they get proper. The playing machines supplied related video games, though the California officers nonetheless clearly deem them as slot machines and video games of likelihood, somewhat than an extension of horse racing, given the current operation to take away them.
Santa Anita’s machines eliminated in public raid
Photographs of the machines being eliminated have been shared on social media, with the raid going down on the afternoon of February 16.
“One thing goes down with the brand new machines right here at Santa Anita,” wrote MoneyLineBet on X.
Effectively one thing goes down with the brand new machines her at Santa Anita
pic.twitter.com/uXU8Hmgx1y
— MoneyLineBet (@MoneyLineBet) January 18, 2026
“The observe’s slots-style ‘Racing On Demand’ gaming machines had been eliminated this afternoon by California Division of Justice brokers,” wrote sports activities and politics journalist Kevin Modesti. “The video games’ legality was unclear as quickly as they had been put in [on] Thursday.”
Information at Santa Anita: The observe’s slots-style “Racing On Demand” gaming machines had been eliminated this afternoon by California Division of Justice brokers. The video games’ legality was unclear as quickly as they had been put in Thursday. Searching for remark from Santa Anita and the DOJ. pic.twitter.com/yMlbmI2B2Q
— Kevin Modesti (@KevinModesti) January 18, 2026
ReadWrite has contacted Santa Anita and the California Division of Justice for remark.
Featured picture: Wikimedia Commons, licensed beneath CC BY 2.0
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