Horse Racing Ireland sees on-course betting increase in 2019

Horse Racing Ireland (HRI), the sports’ national governing body, has reported a 4.5% year-on-year rise in on-course betting turnover for 2019, despite seeing a decline in Tote wagering.

Total on-course betting turnover for the 12 months through to 31 December 2019, including the Tote, amounted to €78.9m (£66.8m/$88.8m), up from €75.5m in the previous year.

Growth was driven by an increase in turnover from betting rings, which climbed 6.6% year-on-year to €58.4m.

However, the HRI noted a decline in turnover from on-course Tote betting, with this falling by 0.9% to €10.6m, while turnover from on-course starting price (SP) shops also fell by 1.0% to €9.9m.

Total Tote betting turnover was also down by 13.0% from €69.2m in 2018 to €60.2m in the past year.

On-course betting was boosted by an increase in attendance, with this figure up 3.2% year-on-year from 1.27m to 1.32m, due in part to a busy Christmas period.

Elsewhere, prize money climbed 4% to €66.1m for the year, while the HRI said commercial sponsorship was also up by 17.3% to €6.1m. However, there was a slight decline in European Breeders Fund sponsorship, which declined 0.5% to €2.19m.

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