Breaking with Family’s Corporate Ties, Frank Stronach Pens Letter Speaking Out Against Controversial Decoupling Bill

[Wandering Eyes]

Florida's polarizing decoupling legislation, which would remove a statutory requirement that Gulfstream Park and Tampa Bay Downs run a minimum number of live Thoroughbred races in order to operate the respective casino and card room at each venue, recently had its first reading in the House of Representatives and remains pending at the committee level in the Senate.

The bill has the backing and was launched at the impetus of Gulfstream's corporate owner, The Stronach Group (TSG).

But in a solidarity twist that supersedes his family's business ties, 92-year-old Frank Stronach, who founded TSG in 2011 but is no longer involved in any of the day-to-day operations of TSG's portfolio of racetracks, signed a letter to the editor published in the Mar. 11 South Florida Sun Sentinel that spoke out against decoupling, opining that, “To put it simply, it would end horse racing in Florida.”

Belinda Stronach is the chairman, chief executive and president of TSG. The rags-to-riches rise of her father, the Austrian-born Frank Stronach, has been well-documented within the racing industry.

Although the family patriarch today is much farther removed from racing's public spotlight, over the decades Frank Stronach has been honored with numerous awards during his ascendancy from a small-scale horse owner and breeder based in Canada to a global Thoroughbred power player.

His letter to the editor in the Sun Sentinel stated, in part:

“Fourteen years ago, I, along with my daughter, founded TSG, a horse racing, entertainment and pari-mutuel wagering technology company. Our most noted contributions to the horse racing industry include world-class courses like Santa Anita Park in California and Pimlico Race Course in Maryland, as well as Gulfstream Park in Hallandale Beach…

“It is from this profound place, with my love of the horse racing industry, a great respect for the Thoroughbred industry and owners, and the continued and unwavering support of the Florida Thoroughbred Horsemen, that I feel compelled to encourage the Florida Legislature not to pass legislation that would jeopardize the future of horse racing in Florida…

“My heartfelt opposition to this legislation comes from my love of the industry, the respect for the men and women in this sport, and the deep concern in what this legislation would mean for the future of horse racing in the state. To put it simply, it would end horse racing in Florida…

“I know that not everyone will feel the same passion for this industry that I do, but I do think we can all understand economic impacts. This legislation will mean that Florida will lose a lot, especially rural and agricultural areas of the state that contribute significantly to horses that are bred, raised and trained.

“I respect those who are pushing this legislation, and I respect my former colleagues at Gulfstream Park for their business interests that have led to this move, but I would say to them that this endeavor is not right. It's not right for the industry; it's not right for those who love horse racing; and it's not right for Florida,” Frank Stronach wrote.

Over the course of six decades, Frank Stronach enjoyed commercial success as an auto-parts magnate, and several of his early racing holdings were intertwined with the firm that he founded, Magna International.

As Frank Stronach's scope and scale of investment within Thoroughbred racing grew, he formed Magna Entertainment Corporation (MEC) in 1999 to keep his racing interests separate from the automotive business.

Belinda Stronach came on board with MEC in 2001 as its chief executive, although she briefly stepped away shortly thereafter for a run in Canadian politics.

After the Stronach family formed TSG, various factions of parents, siblings and grandchildren within the clan turned against one another, leading to a series of lawsuits in Canadian courts that began in 2018 and largely ended several years later with settlements of non-disclosed terms.

Essentially, the agreements entitled Belinda Stronach to remain at the helm of TSG, with full control of its horse racing, gaming, real estate and related assets, while Frank Stronach and his wife, Elfriede, took ownership and control of the family's stallions and breeding business, farm operations in North America, and European assets.

In January, under Belinda Stronach's leadership, TSG told Florida industry stakeholders it could guarantee racing at Gulfstream Park only through 2028 if the proposed bill to decouple Thoroughbred horseracing from casino licenses passes the state legislature.

A TSG consultant also told horsemen at a closed-door meeting that even if the decoupling bill does not pass, “there's no guarantee of when we will continue to race.”

The post Breaking with Family’s Corporate Ties, Frank Stronach Pens Letter Speaking Out Against Controversial Decoupling Bill appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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