When Do the Kentucky Derby Future Wager Pools Open

The Kentucky Derby Future Wager runs as six short betting windows, called pools, spread from late October to early April before the Derby. By the end of this page you will know where the official dates are posted, what last season's calendar looked like, and how to get a bet in before a window shuts. It takes about ten minutes.

Know this before you start: as of October 19, 2026, Churchill Downs had not yet posted any pool dates for the 2027 Derby, which runs Saturday, May 1, 2027. Last year it opened Pool 1 a few days before the Breeders' Cup and closed it just ahead of the Breeders' Cup Juvenile. The window is short and arrives with little notice.

If you are unsure about the first item, the state-by-state answer is on whether Derby betting is legal where you live. If you have no account yet, the second item is covered in which app to use.

1. Open the official Future Wager page. You will see one of two things. Either the new cycle's six pools are listed with dates, or last cycle's six pools are still there, each marked "Closed." In mid-October 2026 the page was still showing the closed calendar for the 2026 Derby.

2. If the old calendar is still up, watch the news during Breeders' Cup week. Churchill Downs announces Pool 1 in a press release, and the Paulick Report's Future Wager archive has carried a story on nearly every pool as each release came out. TwinSpires has noted that a new cycle's Pool 1 usually appears only one to two weeks before it opens. When it has been announced, you will see a headline naming the Pool 1 dates.

3. Pencil in all six windows using last year's spacing. The 2025-26 calendar is below. Expect the 2027 cycle to land in roughly the same weeks. Treat those weeks as estimates until the official dates replace them.

4. Note the open and close times in your own time zone. In the 2025-26 cycle, Churchill Downs opened Pool 1 at noon Eastern and closed it at about 6 p.m. Eastern. For a bettor on the West Coast, that is 9 a.m. and about 3 p.m. Pacific. You have it right when the close time sits in your calendar in local time.

5. Log in during the window and find the futures market on the track list. You should see up to 40 betting interests listed alphabetically. Most are named horses. One is an "All Others" line that covers every horse not listed individually.

6. Place your $2 win bet before the close. You will see a ticket confirmation. Keep it, because the bet cannot be canceled.

Sources: Churchill Downs Pool 1 release and Horse Racing Nation on Pool 2.

The days of the week change from pool to pool. Pool 1 ran Wednesday to Friday so that it would close before the Juvenile. Pool 2 ran Thursday to Sunday. Don't assume every pool keeps one pattern. Read the opening and closing day for each pool as it is announced.

You now know where the dates appear, about when to expect them, and how to get a ticket in before a pool closes. Every bet can lose, and these lose more often than most, because no refund is given if your horse never makes the gate. Bet only where it is legal for you and only with money you can afford to lose. If gambling stops being fun, call or text 1-800-MY-RESET (1-800-697-3738) or visit ncpgambling.org.