How Big Is The Horse Racing Industry?
While many gamblers in the UK may not know it, but while the UK and US are by far the largest horse racing markets in the world, the industry has spread to all corners of the globe. As you would expect, this increase in horse racing has also seen a massive increase in gambling levels and it is now possible to bet on horse racing 24 hours a day, 7 days a week!
For the UK gambler the schedule goes something like this :-
- 1pm start for the afternoon racing, finishing around about 5pm - 5:30pm.
- 5pm - 5:30pm sees the start of a range of evening races which tend to finish about 8:30pm - 9pm.
- 6pm sees the start of US horse racing ,which tends to go until about 1am.
- 1am sees the start of Australian racing, which can go on until about 5am.
- 5am sees racing from Hong Kong kick in, until about 8am - 9am.
- then we have racing from South Africa which covers the break between Honk Kong and the start of the UK racing day.
We have seen an array of satellite sports channels come to the fore, with many concentrating on the horse racing market. When you also consider the vast array of betting exchanges and other gambling sites available, the traditional “punter” will have liquid markets at any time of the day or night.
There have been some major changes in the horse racing industry over the last 20 or 30 years, and these changes have all been aimed at the gambling market, without which horse racing would be dead. We have seen massive investment, particularly in the UK, with many of the older more traditional courses receiving major revamps, and the introduction of a whole host of hospitality facilities.
It is now possible to have a full day at the races with a bite to eat, entertainment and horse racing - what more can you ask for?