Woodbine’s Racing Night Live Returns Friday, Featuring Thoroughbred And Standardbred Action

When Racing Night Live presented by OLG returns this Friday on TSN, the broadcast will once again, noted Woodbine Entertainment CEO Jim Lawson, have all the angles covered. Literally and figuratively speaking.

Back on track starting Friday, June 18, at 7 p.m. ET, Racing Night Live (RNL), a partnership between Woodbine Entertainment and TSN, will showcase world-class Thoroughbred and Standardbred action from Woodbine Racetrack and Woodbine Mohawk Park, respectively.

For Lawson, it's not just the dual-breed live horse racing offering – seven or eight races over two hours – that makes RNL must-see TV.

“I really loved what we did last year,” said Lawson. “We had become mired in the traditional broadcast of racing, handicapping, and wagering. It was hugely successful, a show that was largely geared to a new fan base and a new audience. The work of our production crew and TSN's production crew really came through in the show. It exceeded my expectations. I looked forward to it every week because it was fun and it was new. It certainly took racing to a new level of fun.”

The idea for RNL was born after Lawson and Christina Litz [former Vice President, Digital Media, Business and Revenue Development with Woodbine] approached TSN with the idea of broadcasting live horse racing on Thursday evenings, a night that is traditionally dedicated to CFL action.

When the pandemic hit last March and live sporting events were eventually halted, including the CFL, Lawson and Litz got their plan out of the gates quickly, reaching out to TSN to find out if there was interest in airing horse racing on their channel.

“Christina and I have a long association with TSN through our time with the CFL,” said Lawson, who was the league's Chairman of the Board of Governors from September 2013 to December 2019. “When it became apparent that TSN wasn't going to have CFL games to show on Thursday nights, I reached out to Stewart Johnston [Bell Media's SVP of Sales & Sports] and told him we'd be ready to go – that was at the time the Premier announced the reopening of the economy, in what was then called Phase 1, on May 27. I asked Stew if he would be interested in airing horse racing. After talking with Stew and Christina speaking with Paul Graham [Executive Producer, TSN], we got the nod to go ahead with it.”

However, like any live TV production, Racing Night Live required support from sponsors to make it happen. Not surprisingly, industry partners OLG, HBPA, and COSA all stepped up quickly as sponsors to help bring the show to life and have committed to return for 2021. The show was also supported by Woodbine partners Pepsi, Kraft-Heinz, DRF and Budweiser.

With TSN's interest, combined with support from key industry partners, the show still faced some unprecedented challenges brought on by the global pandemic.

“TSN saw it as a good testing ground on how to broadcast live sports during pandemic. There were all kinds of procedures and protocols they developed with us. Wearing masks, physical distancing – there were many things to go over and adapt to ahead of that first show. There were a lot of different challenges.”

The day prior to the first show, Lawson sat down with TSN's Brian Williams to discuss how the pandemic had impacted the horse racing industry and how Woodbine would operate live racing to ensure the safety of all participants. The segment was featured the following evening on RNL.

Despite several hurdles to overcome, including navigating a broadcast in the midst of COVID-19, RNL's first show of 2020 aired on June 11, making it Canada's first live sports broadcast production during the pandemic.

“April and May had passed, so there were a couple of months of just nothing in terms of live sports. People were starving for something live. The idea for RNL was mostly spawned because there were no live sports available for fans. We put it together really quickly.”

In racing parlance, the debut proved to be a winning trip, a chance to highlight top-level Thoroughbred and Standardbred racing, open up the sport to a new breed of fan, showcase racing and its community through a human-interest lens, all packaged in an engaging viewer experience.

From having Juno Award-winning Canadian music group Arkells contribute their talents to the first show, to different camera angles capturing all of the on-track action, to the hosts seamlessly keeping pace between the two breeds, to Brodie Lawson presenting a weekly segment called 'Top 5 presented by Pepsi', and a clever and fun way to educate fans about the sport through a segment called “Angles”, RNL resonated with fans at the outset and continued to evolve throughout the season.

“The show took on a new life, bringing a fun experience to viewers. We had never taken that approach before where there was a new target audience. It had a new look and feel to it. I give a lot of that credit to Christina Litz. There was music, up-and-coming bands – it just had a different feel to it. I think that made it a lot of fun, to have the music, and a new, fresh approach. The Top 5 was interesting, not only for newcomers, but for also for people that have been around racing a long time. I looked forward to what music and what band was going to play, what slant the show would have on racing that week. I think it was great.

“Having the two breeds was also fantastic. No one had ever been in the position we are, to have what we do, two breeds racing at the same time. I can't think of any racetrack in the world that can go back and forth on the same show. That was also a great aspect for me. It was interesting to see the two breeds spotlighted in one broadcast.”

Perhaps most importantly, the show cumulatively reached more than 2.4 million viewers, showcasing racing to a new audience in 2020.

“We were able to sell our sport. We spent a lot of time with the jockeys and drivers, in particular, getting people to know them, to hear their stories. Those human-interest stories we did were fascinating and they really resonated with people. That makes our sport more interesting to the consumer. I think we did a good job with that.”

Lawson is eager to tune-in for the upcoming season of RNL, which will feature a total of 15 shows starting Friday. After the first five broadcasts, RNL will have a three-week break for the upcoming Summer Olympics, and then air 10 more shows.

“I absolutely am looking forward to it. I can't wait for that first show and all of our broadcasts this year. I think that everything RNL offers is great for horse racing across the country.”

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TSN, Woodbine Bringing Back ‘Racing Night Live’ This Fall

TSN and Woodbine Entertainment announced Friday that the exciting live horse racing series RACING NIGHT LIVE returns to Canada's Sports Leader this fall. Moving to the network's marquee Friday night timeslot, RACING NIGHT LIVE kicks off Friday, Oct. 16 at 7 p.m. ET on TSN, featuring even more live races each week.

A complete schedule of TSN's RACING NIGHT LIVE coverage is available at TSN.ca (schedule subject to change).

The two-hour weekly show will now feature at least three Thoroughbred races (depending on the number of races on the card) from Woodbine Racetrack in Toronto, and four Standardbred races (up from three) from Woodbine Mohawk Park in Milton, Ontario.

Viewers across Canada have been joining in on RACING NIGHT LIVE action and wagering on live races through Woodbine's new easy-to-use horse racing app Dark Horse. Broadcasts have also featured a slate of performances from top Canadian musical artists.

“Racing Night Live has been such a tremendous opportunity for horse racing to connect with a new audience in a dynamic way,” said Jim Lawson, CEO, Woodbine Entertainment.  “We are thrilled to partner with TSN to bring Racing Night Live back in an even bigger way.”

Weekly editions of RACING NIGHT LIVE are produced through a partnership between Woodbine Entertainment, TSN, and Dome Productions. The show is hosted by TSN's Laura Diakun and Woodbine Entertainment's Jason Portuondo, with Brodie Lawson and Chad Rozema contributing reports from track level.

RACING NIGHT LIVE complements TSN's live broadcast coverage of the OLG Canadian Triple Crown. The Queen's Plate champion Mighty Heart won the Prince of Wales Stakes last week and now holds the first two jewels of the OLG Canadian Triple Crown. Should Mighty Heart win the Breeders' Stakes, airing on Saturday, October 24 live on TSN, he would become the first OLG Canadian Triple Crown winner since Wando won it in 2003.

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America’s Best Racing, Woodbine Entertainment Announce Marketing Partnership

America's Best Racing (ABR), a multimedia fan development and awareness-building platform designed to increase the profile and visibility of North America's best Thoroughbred racing events, and Woodbine Entertainment (Woodbine) today announced a cross-promotional marketing partnership. As part of the partnership, ABR and Woodbine Entertainment will work together to create and distribute content across digital channels to fans across North America, sharing stories from Woodbine Racetrack and Woodbine Mohawk Park and promoting wagering opportunities on Woodbine's Thoroughbred and Standardbred racing.

As part of the expansive collaboration, Woodbine will license US broadcast rights to Racing Night Live on TSN every Thursday evening (6 p.m. to 8 p.m. ET) to ABR for distribution on ABR's YouTube channel – https://www.youtube.com/americasbestracing. Racing personalities and analysts from ABR will make in-show appearances during each Thursday night telecast to promote content offered at www.AmericasBestRacing.net and to highlight upcoming big races across America. Simultaneously, ABR will live stream a “Woodbine Live” handicapper's show on its Twitter and Facebook channels to promote wagering on races at Woodbine every Thursday night.

“We're thrilled to partner with Woodbine Entertainment and are excited to leverage our social media channels, video production, second screen live video show promotions, and digital content team to help amplify Canadian horse racing across America,” said Stephen B. Panus, President of TJC Media Ventures, Inc. “This is a tremendous opportunity to reach and attract a new demographic to the best of Canadian horse racing, including via the innovative, AI-powered app 'Dark Horse.' Additionally, we're pleased to have the opportunity to showcase Racing Night Live via the TSN broadcast every Thursday across our YouTube channel. American horse racing fans and sports bettors will enjoy wagering on and watching the live racing experience at Woodbine Racetrack and Woodbine Mohawk Park, respectively.”

“As our content strategy continues to evolve and we look to engage our fans and attract a new generation of fans across North America, ABR is an excellent partner,” said Jim Lawson, CEO, Woodbine Entertainment. “We have always been big fans of how ABR reaches and engages fans through their channels, so we are naturally excited about how we can partner with them to distribute more Woodbine content as well.”

Among the other highlights of the multi-faceted partnership agreement:

· ABR will produce and stream Woodbine-sponsored Live Shows (2 hours per show) and Mini-Live shows (45 minutes per show) in 2020 featuring handicappers, sports bettors and various influencers betting Woodbine races on key dates during the 2020 Thoroughbred and Standardbred racing seasons:

Saturday, August 15 — Woodbine Oaks Day
Saturday, August 29 – Pepsi North America Cup (Woodbine Mohawk Park)
Friday, September 11 — Day before The Queen's Plate
Saturday, September 12 — The Queen's Plate
Friday, September 18 — Day Before Woodbine Mile
Saturday, September 26 – Mohawk Million (Woodbine Mohawk Park)
Saturday, October 24 — Breeders' Stakes Day

· To complement ABR's stream of Racing Night Live on its YouTube channel, ABR will produce a weekly 2-hour live show, secondscreen experience streamed on ABR's Facebook & Twitter channels every Thursday from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. ET, through September 10. Each show will be hosted by ABR's Dan Tordjman and will also feature leading handicappers Emily Gullikson and Ashley Mailloux, focusing on Woodbine Thoroughbred and Standardbred analysis respectively.

· ABR will distribute regular Woodbine content that focuses on handicapping of Woodbine racing, big wins from Woodbine racing and more.

Launched in 2012, America's Best Racing continues to reach and attract a new and younger demographic to the sport, with a focus on the gambling, racing and lifestyle. A significant majority of the users (61% men and 39% women) to America's Best Racing are under the age of 50 while over 80% of ABR's social media audience falls under the age of 44. ABR has national distribution via NBCSports.com and CBSSports.com, hosts a weekly radio show on SBNation Radio every Saturday which broadcasts in more than 105 national markets, and is the title sponsor of national television coverage of live horse racing on both Fox Sports and NBC Sports.

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