wagering

American Thoroughbreds raced for purse money in excess of $125 million during the month of May, an improvement of more than 17% over the corresponding figure from 2021, according to figures released Monday by Equibase. During the month, bettors put $1.41 billion through the windows, representing a fractional decrease from last year. Over the course of 399 race days in May--the precise number from 12 months ago--purse money averaged $313,461, up from the $267,712 in 2021. With five months in the books, gamblers have wagered over $473 billion, a healthy...

Caesars Sportsbook and NYRA Bets, which together announced in March a new horse racing account wagering app, have officially launched the Caesars Racebook App in both Florida and Ohio. Additional states are slated to be added throughout the year. Now available for download on iOS, Caesars Racebook utilizes the NYRA Bets platform providing bettors with pari-mutuel wagering on premier racing content from more than 250 tracks around the world. New customers registering for Caesars Racebook will be eligible for a 100% first deposit match up to $500. "The new Caesars...

It was a hectic week in the Thoroughbred business with all eyes firmly focussed on Louisville, Kentucky. Here are some facts and figures that you might have missed in the rush. Record Numbers... Wagering from all-sources on the Kentucky Derby (single race) totaled $179 million, up 15% over 2021 and up 8% from the previous record of $166.5-million set in 2019. This year's wagering record includes $8.3 million of handle put through the window in Japan. The Smart Strike Factor... As a broodmare sire, Smart Strike has the distinction of...

A crowd of 147,294 witnessed Rich Strike's (Keen Ice) 80-1 upset in the 148th running of the GI Kentucky Derby Saturday at Churchill Downs. Wagering from all-sources on the Kentucky Derby Day program totaled $273.8 million, a 17% increase over 2021 and up 9% from the previous record in 2019 of $250.9 million. Wagering from all-sources on the Kentucky Derby race totaled $179.0 million, up 15% over 2021 and up 8% from the previous record of $166.5 million set in 2019. This year's wagering record includes $8.3 million of handle...

Purses are up 15.17% for April 2022 at $103,144,902 compared to $89,560,470 in April 2021. Race days, races and starts have also increased with 14 more race days this April than last year at this time. Meanwhile, wagering is down 2.06% from in April 2021 $1,102,169,529 to $1,079,452,871 in April 2022. Average wagering per race day has also decreased 6.74% from $3,950,428 to $3,684,139. However, wagering is up .19% for the year.

Keeneland closed its 2022 Spring Meet Friday with all-sources handle in excess of $219 million to establish an all-time meet wagering record for the track, and a third consecutive season of record handle. The Lexington oval offered record average daily purses of $1.147 million, attracting an average of 9.1 starters per race. "This Spring Meet was unmatched in many measures, most of all the fact that everyone seemed to revel in the energy of having fans back in full force on race days," said Keeneland President and CEO Shannon Arvin....

As part of its wagering menu for Kentucky Derby day May 7, Churchill Downs will offer an 'All 3-Year-Old' Pick 3 and an all-dirt Pick 5 wager, both of which close with the Run for the Roses. The 3-year-old Pick 3 will have a minimum $3 stake and includes the $500,000 GII American Turf and the GII Pat Day Mile before concluding with the Derby. Like all rolling 50-cent Pick 3s, the wager will have a 22% takeout. An all-dirt, all-stakes Pick 5 will have a 50-cent minimum and 15%...

LEXINGTON, KY--The Association of Racing Commissioners International (ARCI) announced the official launch of the Sports Betting Regulators Association (SBRA) during the closing session of the group's 88th Annual Conference on Safe Horses and Honest Sport. ARCI president and CEO Ed Martin explained that the formation of the SBRA has been in the works for several years and was organized to meet a growing need to support government agencies assigned with the responsibility of regulating sports betting within their jurisdiction. Sports betting in America continues to expand and has now been...

Total wagering on U.S. races topped $911 million and purse money exceeded $75 million in the month of February, according to statistics released Friday by Equibase. Compared to the $840.5 million wagered on U.S. races in 2021, the current figure represented a healthy gain of 8.39% while purse money rose by a whopping 22.09%. The number of U.S. race days and number of races run each increased by double digits, though average field size and the average wagering per race day declined modestly. Average purses per race day were $295,009,...

HOT SPRINGS, Ark.--Dave Basler sees betting on table tennis in Asia and envisions it being replaced with horse racing in America's burgeoning sports books. "We can fill that void a lot of times during the day so that they don't have to play table tennis from China or cricket from Australia--things that people have no idea about," Basler, the executive director of the Ohio HBPA, said Thursday during a morning session of the National HBPA Conference at Oaklawn Racing Casino Resort. "That's not just attractive to sports books, that's attractive...

According to statistics released Feb. 4 by Equibase, wagering on North American racing during the first month of the new year totaled $942.6 million, a decrease of 1.82% from the corresponding figure from 2021, while owners raced for purse money of better than $82 million combined, a whopping 15.48% more than the $71.1 million from 12 months ago. Despite the wintry weather that annually claims its fair share of programs and a pause in racing in Maryland owing to track maintenance, the number of race days increased fractionally last month...

California's purse and handle numbers are in, and after the pandemic-stricken figures of last year, there's plenty of reason for encouragement. A 13% increase in California races over 2020 translated into a 17% increase in all source handle and a 19% increase in purse generation. "Handle is up everywhere, including Southern California, which generated really nice purses for us in 2021," said Gary Fenton, chairman of the Thoroughbred Owners of California (TOC). "It's created this momentum for us," Fenton said, pointing to the purse enhancements offered by Santa Anita and...