Minnesota racinos in the broad sense
A racino usually means a racetrack with slot machines or video lottery terminals, as the what is a racino guide explains. Minnesota racinos stretch that definition. Each pairs live racing with a casino floor, but the floor holds card tables and poker games, not machines, and the state has kept it that way for over two decades.
For a visitor the difference is obvious on arrival. There are no rows of reels, no jackpot banks and no electronic gaming area in the usual sense. Instead there are dealers, felt tables and poker rooms, plus a racebook for simulcast betting. Both tracks are open to 18-year-olds, which is unusual among American racetrack casinos.
How the card casinos law works
The legislature authorized card clubs at Class A racetracks in 1999, with the stated aim of supporting purses. Under Minnesota Statutes section 240.30, a track may run a card club only after the Minnesota Racing Commission approves its plan of operation, which must list every game and set the hours and locations of play.
The statute also sets hard limits on the card casinos. No more than 80 tables may be in use at once, excluding tables for instruction or poker tournaments. Most wagers are capped at $100, or $300 in games where each player bets only once, and a track must have run at least 50 live racing days in the previous year.
How the house earns money is left to the commission: a track may deduct money from wagers, charge for playing time or use other approved methods. The operators advertise many of their blackjack and carnival games as having no commission or ante, and the plan approved for each card club spells out which of these methods apply to each game.
Minimum age and where the money goes
Section 240.25 of the statute says no one under 18 may place a pari-mutuel bet or take part in card playing at a racetrack card club. Both tracks post that rule, and staff check identification at the gaming areas. Visitors who play should treat it as paid entertainment and set a limit before sitting down at a table.
By law, from what a track collects for card playing, it must set aside at least 10 percent of the first $6 million for purses and at least 14 percent above that. A tenth of the set-aside goes to the breeders fund for Minnesota-bred horses, so the card tables at Minnesota racinos help pay for racing.
Minnesota racinos at a glance
| Venue | City | Racing | Gaming |
|---|---|---|---|
| Canterbury Park | Shakopee | Thoroughbred, Quarter Horse | Card casino and poker, open 24/7 |
| Running Aces | Columbus | Harness | Card casino, poker, electronic card terminals, hotel |
Neither of the two Minnesota racinos has a sportsbook, because sports betting is not legal in the state, and neither offers online casino games. Both card casinos stay open after the meets end, both run year-round simulcast betting on racing from other states, and both host concerts, shows or trade events outside the racing season.
Canterbury Park in Shakopee
Canterbury Park opened as Canterbury Downs in 1985, closed in 1992 and reopened under the Sampson family in 1995. Its card casino, smoke-free and open around the clock, deals blackjack, baccarat, Pai Gow and a long list of carnival games, and the track describes its poker room as the largest in the Midwest. The racebook opens daily.
The 2026 Thoroughbred and Quarter Horse meet ran 50 days from May 23 to September 19, with average attendance of 5,234, up 9 percent on 2025, and total handle near $39.7 million. The owner, Canterbury Park Holding Corporation, is listed on Nasdaq and is also developing the land around the track for housing, offices and restaurants.
Running Aces in Columbus
Running Aces opened in 2008 as a harness track beside Interstate 35, north of the Twin Cities. Its smoke-free card room deals blackjack, EZ Baccarat, Face Up Pai Gow and other games, and a separate section offers electronic card terminals, including a dealer-assisted five-card draw poker game playable from 50 cents a hand.
The 2026 harness meet, the track’s 19th, ran 55 nights from May 17 to September 19 with projected purses above $6 million. Running Aces also has a 116-room hotel in Wyndham’s Trademark Collection, connected to the casino, plus the Trout Air Tavern restaurant, monthly comedy nights and an outdoor concert and film area called The Outskirts.
Horse racing calendar for 2026
| Track | 2026 dates | Race days | Breeds |
|---|---|---|---|
| Canterbury Park | May 23 – September 19 | Select Wed, Thu, Sat, Sun and holidays | Thoroughbred, Quarter Horse |
| Running Aces | May 17 – September 19 | Tuesday, Thursday, Sunday | Harness |
Horse racing in Minnesota fits into a tight summer window, with both meets opening in the second half of May and finishing on the same September weekend. Canterbury’s Minnesota Festival of Champions stakes and the Night of Champions at Running Aces both showcase Minnesota-bred horses late in the meet. The horse racing schedule lists dates nationwide.
Why the tracks never got slots
Racino bills arrived in the late 1990s, when a 1997 proposal would have put slot machines at Canterbury Park. Opposition from Minnesota’s tribes, which operate the state’s slot casinos under compacts, and from gambling opponents sank it and its successors. In 2003 a plan died when Senate Democrats refused to expand gambling beyond tribal casinos.
The House passed a racino bill in 2004, but it died in the Senate; from 2005 to 2011 supporters spent over $3 million lobbying. In 2012 Canterbury Park dropped the effort for a $75 million, ten-year purse agreement with the Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community, which owns Mystic Lake. That deal expired at the end of 2022.
The last attempt went through the regulator instead. In 2024 the Racing Commission approved historical horse racing machines for both tracks, but the legislature responded with a law, effective May 25, 2024, banning them and barring the commission from authorizing any gambling not written into statute. For players wanting slot-style racinos, Iowa is the nearest state that offers them.