Horse racing gets shot in arm as festive spectator numbers boom
Horse racing tracks across the country boasted of increased attendances over the festive period as the sport got a much needed shot in the arm.
Amid concerns in the sport about prize money and the number of horses starting in races, the Christmas break saw thousands flock to the country’s top courses.
Newbury say spectator levels were just shy of 10,000 compared to 6,700 in 2024 while over 10,000 went to Wetherby to contribute to the biggest crowd since the Covid-19 pandemic.
Chepstow’s Coral Welsh Grand National day saw over 8,500 through the turnstiles – up on last year.
Over 20,000 went to Kempton over the two-day King George VI Chase meeting, where Constitution Hill made a winning return in the Christmas Hurdle.
Nearly 20,000 attended the Grade 1 Long Walk Hurdle card at Ascot.
Thousands, too, are expected at Cheltenham on New Year’s Day for a seven race card headlined by the Betfair Exchange Handicap Chase.
Horse racing up, up and up
Newbury’s chief executive Shaun Hinds said: “We’re up 48 per cent from last year and that’s really good news. It’s a pattern we’re seeing here, but post-Christmas a lot of other courses are seeing this trend too.
“The racing on the track has been awesome. We saw some brilliant horses and the crowd had a great time. I’m very pleased and this is very much a bellwether of what we can do if we put our minds to it.”
Added Chepstow’s general manager Luke Admans: “We saw a big uplift in general admission attendance, with a particularly strong period of sales in the week leading up to the day.
“We’re thrilled to be able to also activate the wet weather guarantee as a gesture of goodwill due to the poor visibility on track. That will enable all ticket holders to return with a free ticket to any of our racedays between January and March.”
Wetherby’s chief executive Jonjo Sanderson told the Racing Post: It makes a difference when Leeds United are playing away on Boxing Day and the good weather helped – a bad forecast can make people nervous, but there was never the prospect of any threat to racing. It felt like a big crowd and we’re very pleased.”