Total handle, betting per race, field size decline in 2019

Wagering on U.S. races fell in 2019 when compared to the total amount of betting the previous year and when adjusted for a decline in races held during the year, according to figures released on Monday by Equibase. It was the first decline in the amount bet on U.S. races in five years.

Total betting on races held at U.S. racetracks was $11.04 billion, a 2 percent decline from total wagering in 2018 of $11.26 billion. With the number of races held last year declining 1.0 percent, the average handle per race in 2019 dropped 1 percent, from $307,877 last year to $304,858 this year.

Despite the betting decline, the total amount of purses distributed in U.S. races rose 4.5 percent, to $1.17 billion, a record. Coupled with the small decline in the number of races, the average purse per race rose 5.5 percent to $32,231, also a record. Purses at U.S. racetracks are heavily subsidized by casino revenues.

Racing in 2019 was conducted under a constant barrage of criticism from anti-racing organizations, spurred on by a spate of deaths early in the year at Santa Anita Park in Southern California. Given that the economy remained strong throughout the year, and that racing was coming off four straight years of unadjusted handle growth, the negative media attention likely had an impact on handle figures, especially in California.

A number of other figures continued to decline in 2019, including average field size, which dropped 1.65 percent, from 7.65 in 2018 to 7.53 in 2019. It was the fifth year in a row in which average field size declined. In addition, the number of race days declined a marginal amount, seven days, dropping from 4,432 in 2018 to 4,425 in 2019.

The 2018 whole-year numbers benefited from a tax change implemented late in 2017 that was highly favorable to horseplayers. In addition, 2018 included a win of the Triple Crown by the horse Justify, an event that often serves to boost wagering figures.

But despite any caveats, the 2019 figures demonstrate that racing remains stuck in a post-recession limbo, seemingly unable to muster any strong financial growth numbers at a time when sports wagering is rapidly increasing the number of competitors for the gambling dollar. The highwater mark for racing handle remains 2003, when total betting on U.S. races reached $15.3 billion, a figure that slid to $9.3 billion in 2014.

While betting was down 3.23 percent in the first six months of the year, wagering picked up in the second half of the year, down only 0.66 percent, according to Equibase, despite a 2.3 percent decline in races held. In the fourth quarter of the year, which includes the Breeders’ Cup, wagering was up 0.85 percent, even as the number of races declined 3.6 percent, according to the figures. Average field size during the quarter was even at 8.05.