Wagering dipped compared to a year ago in June, but so did the number of race days, according to information released by Equibase on Friday.
Total wagering of $956,784,146 on races during the month represented a 7.18% decrease over the same period from 2024, while available purses of over $114 million were lower by 5.87%. The figure of over $110 million for paid purses in June was also down by 5.95%. As for the total number of race days, they also decreased from 408 to 380 (-6.86%) and the number of U.S. races was lower from 3,207 in June 2024 to last month's tally of 2,964 (-7.58%).
Average field size in June was down a tick from over a year ago when it was 7.18, and checked in at an average of 7.06 runners, a decrease of 1.67%. Average daily wagering decreased slightly by 0.34% to $2,517,853, but the average available purse number per race day was up 1.07% to $301,518 from the figure of $298,340 in 2024.
When it comes to the year-to-date figures, through June of 2024 wagering on U.S. races came in at $5.951 billion, while this year the amount is $5.786 billion (-2.77%). Those numbers include worldwide commingled wagering on U.S. races.
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