Schrupp opens up on FanDuel TV exit on Flatter Pod

Todd Schrupp spent 26 years and eight months as one of horse racing’s most recognizable television voices. He broke his silence Friday on the Ron Flatter Racing Pod, speaking publicly for the first time since his departure from FanDuel TV on Feb. 13. The appearance came before Schrupp's announcement Monday that he will join the crew of America's Day at the Races for a two-week run beginning Thursday.

“Heartbreaking. Just heartbreaking,” Schrupp said of the March 27 announcement that FanDuel TV will phase out its horse racing operations by the end of 2027, eliminating more than 100 positions. “You never wanted it to end.”

The Minnesota native, who started as a teenager in customer relations at Canterbury Downs before joining TVG at its 1999 launch, described a “perfect storm” of factors behind the network’s demise. Flutter Entertainment’s stock price dropped roughly 60% from its highs, and the 2022 rebranding from TVG to FanDuel TV drew what Schrupp called “huge blowback” from the racing audience.

He acknowledged that FanDuel’s massive sports-betting advertising presence across major professional leagues made owning a standalone network redundant.

“A television network was always a luxury for FanDuel,” Schrupp said. “If you looked at the amount of money they spend in advertising, they were everywhere. You couldn’t miss them. So what was the advantage to having our network?”

Further muddying the waters, FanDuel’s naming-rights deal with Main Street Sports Group’s regional sports networks – separate entities that operate independently from FanDuel TV – created public confusion, particularly as Main Street prepared to shut down those channels at the end of the NBA and NHL seasons.

Through its 26-year run, the network survived under a revolving door of corporate parents – from Gemstar TV Guide to a period when former Disney CEO Michael Eisner toured the studio as a prospective buyer – none of whom came from the gambling world or fully grasped the racing business. The dynamic shifted when Betfair, a betting exchange whose co-founder owned racehorses, acquired TVG.

“We’re owned by a gambling company. They get us,” Schrupp said. “We didn’t have to explain what we did.”

Betfair’s merger with Paddy Power produced Flutter Entertainment, which eventually acquired FanDuel and folded TVG into its U.S. operation. The pandemic further validated the network’s worth when horse racing continued while other sports shut down, but that sense of security proved fleeting.

Schrupp declined to detail the circumstances of his own Feb. 13 departure but hinted that events dating to the summer of 2024 – when he took an eight-week absence and executive producer Kevin Grigsby departed – set the course for his exit, telling listeners to “connect the dots.”

He admitted the separation shook him. “After February 13th, I spent the next three weeks just waking up in these night sweats,” Schrupp said. “This was more my identity than I ever thought.”

What sustained him, Schrupp said, came from the audience – the viewers who shared stories of discovering the network during hospital recoveries, lockdowns and lonely stretches. He recalled colleague Simon Bray’s return to the set after treatment for multiple myeloma, when fans lined up daily to share their own cancer experiences.

“Don’t forget that people on TVG, FanDuel TV and other places that present horse racing, there is a connection with the audience that goes beyond what they do as far as wagering,” Schrupp said. “Make the audience your north star. At the end, that’s what matters the most.”

Looking ahead, Schrupp praised the New York Racing Association’s response to the void, singling out CEO and president David O’Rourke and chief revenue officer Tony Allevato, a former TVG producer who outlined plans to expand racing coverage through NYRA’s partnership with FOX. He also credited NYRA host Greg Wolf and Jim McKay Award winner Laffit Pincay III, who did shifts at TVG in the early days.

“For an industry that says it lacks leadership, there are some people who are stepping up right now that I am so impressed by,” Schrupp said. “I hope that horse racing appreciates what they’re doing.”

Schrupp said he hoped something would materialize soon and noted he will return to the track on Kentucky Oaks and Kentucky Derby days as an analyst for WLEX-TV, the NBC affiliate in Lexington, Ky. – a role he has held for 18 years.

He spoke on behalf of the nearly 200 FanDuel TV employees affected by the shutdown, expressing gratitude while urging the industry to study the roadmap TVG and FanDuel TV established.

“Out of this kind of dark moment for a lot of us can come some really good,” Schrupp said. “It can finally bring the industry together to work on one thing, and that thing is very important – exposure to a wide audience.”