Horse Racing Ireland Publishes Figures For First Six Months Of 2023

The statistics show gains in the areas of attendances and betting but a levelling off of a number of other figures when compared to the same period last year.

Six-month statistics for horse racing and breeding in Ireland show gains in the areas of attendances and betting but a levelling off of a number of other figures when compared to the same period last year.

The figures for the first half of 2023, released today by Horse Racing Ireland (HRI), show that attendances, prize money, race sponsorship and betting with bookmakers and Tote, both on and off-course, are ahead of where they were this time last year, with slight reductions in the number of fixtures, races, entries, total runners and average field sizes.  

The figures, which run to Sunday July 2, the final day of the Dubai Duty Free Irish Derby festival at the Curragh, show reported attendances of 544,147, an increase of 7.6% on the first six months of 2022. T

otal race sponsorship is up 4.8% to €4.4m with horses winning overall prize money of €30.6m, up 1% despite a reduction in the number of race meetings by two to 176.

Total Tote Betting (excluding World Pools) for the first half of the year is up 6.3% at €33.9m.

The World Pool was incorporated at the Curragh on Dubai Duty Free Irish Derby Day for the first time with 28 pool betting operators from around the globe wagering an additional €25.8m across the eight races.

Total on-course betting reached €36.1m with on-course bookmakers handling €32.1m and on-course shops returning an overall figure of €4.4m.

The total number of horses-in-training during the period rose by almost 300 to 8,614 (up 3.3%), but the number of active owners fell by the same percentage to 3,843.

The number of new owners registered in the first half of 2023 was 455.

While the Goffs Punchestown Sale and the Tattersalls Ireland Breeze-up Sale performed well and there was a strong demand at the store sales, the figure for Bloodstock Sales at Public auction overall fell by 2.4% to €61m.

Suzanne Eade, CEO of Horse Racing Ireland, said:

“I welcome these figures as a testament to the resilience of the Irish racing and breeding industry. On the back of consistent Government support, our industry continues to be a key contributor to rural communities in virtually every county, providing direct and indirect employment at every turn and a vital social outlet to so many people.