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A very encouraging and pleasant surprise
They are encouraging figures, for sure. Although I wonder how much is due to concerts, student days, special offers etc. And I don’t see any sign that it has resulted in an increase in betting turnover, on which much of the sport’s funding depends.
The report states it is the first time since 2019 that attendances have topped 5 million. That was the last year before the dark days of the lockdown era. Perhaps it was inevitable attendances would bounce back at some point.
On a local to me level, I see that Aintree on Boxing Day attracted a crowd of fraction under 9,000. That is compared to around 6,000 for the previous two Boxing Day fixtures, the second of which occurred in thick fog.
A 50% increase is impressive but I suppose it should be taken into consideration that the weather was much better and neither Liverpool nor Everton were playing that day. Still, a crowd of 9,000 for a moderate Grade 1 and an ordinary enough undercard is quite good.
Crowd at Kelso on December 29th was 5,157 which is, according to the HBLB attendance records, the biggest attendance at the course since 2007. There was an after-racing party but the meeting sells on it’s main attraction, the horse racing.
How many of these people are actually interested in racing, compared to those just there for a few drinks?
Racing has always been a social event with not everyone being interested in the sport itself. Surely if people pay to go for other reasons and it ploughs money into the sport that we love and enables it to continue that can only be a good thing.I personally don’t drink so don’t understand racing fans who drink at meetings as I prefer to spend my time at places like the pre parade ring.If racing meeting only welcomed people who could prove that they were genuine fans of the sport itself it would be the end of it.
People going to race meetings as a day out is all well and good but how much are they helping the sport if they do not have a bet?
Turnover on racing is in decline. This is due to several reasons, so it is not entirely caused by people drinking rather than betting on the racecourse. However, I believe racing does have to take on the puritans and do more to promote betting. It is fundamental to the sport.
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