Run The Numbers – Where to now for the live broodmare auction?

In its pomp in 2007, the Magic Millions National Broodmare Sale catalogued 1281 mares and fillies and ran for over a week, and saw 906 horses change hands.

Last week, the catalogue was 416-strong, with 311 fillies, mares, and stallion shares traded. It was over in less than two days.

In an indication of the incredible increase in the value of thoroughbreds in Australia, even compared to the peak market bubble of 2007, the total traded across the sale was higher this year – $67.4 million – than it was 19 years ago, when it stood just short of $55 million. The average price paid has rocketed from $60,692 in 2007 to $216,757.

That last statistic has as much to do with the dramatically changed broodmare market in Australia, especially since the pandemic. Live auction sales for broodmares and race fillies have become more select than ever as the digital market drives liquidity, and the live market facilitates quality.

Comparative stats with 2007 for Inglis’ broodmare sales are harder as the formats have changed. However, at the Australian Broodmare Sale alone that year, there were 658 mares traded, with $42.7 million spent, while there were another 140 mares and fillies sold at a Scone sale later that year.

In 2026, the Australian Broodmare Sale, as a live sale, did not exist; instead, it was replaced by a premium digital offering. Inglis also ditched the broodmare aspect of the Great Southern Sale a couple of years back. It means that the 81 mares and fillies which changed hands at the Chairman’s Sale are the only ones which will be sold in a live auction by Inglis this year.

It also means that the combined number of broodmares traded in Australia through a traditional sales ring in 2026 is 392 across those two sales, with $106.7 million spent.

As recently as 2019, the number of sold stood at 1288, and the gross was $226 million.

It is not difficult to work out what has happened to the live auction market in Australia. The digital market, accelerated by the pandemic, has completely disrupted the practice of offering mares and fillies in person.

While top-end quality demands closer inspection, the majority of mares are relocated with a few clicks on a Wednesday afternoon.

While there was no doubt a correction of the top-end mare market in the live format in 2026 – the average across the two major mare sales was $272,057 compared to $321,557 in 2025 – the willingness to buy and sell mares looks as strong as ever.

The total number of broodmares traded (not counting race fillies) exploded from 2019 to 2020, as the digital market took hold. In 2019, according to sales data, there were 941 broodmares across all platforms; in 2020, that number jumped to 1821.

The broodmare trade market peaked in 2022 when 2125 mares changed hands, while the number has moderated since then to 1525 in 2025 (broodmares only, not race fillies). The comparative “all broodmares” figure in 2007 was 2118, but that had dropped to 1354 by 2013/14.

The overall impact of the digital market can be seen in the total number of horses traded figures over the past decade. In 2016, there were 9206 thoroughbreds sold in Australia, this increased to 9749 and 10,573 over the following two years. In 2019, it stood at 10,640.

Despite the pandemic’s worst impacts, the digital market saw the total number of horses sold grow to 11,071 in 2020. It then jumped to 13,014, 13,505 and 14,241 across the three bloodstock boom years.

In the past two years, the number has dropped slightly to 13,588 (2024) and 13,471 (2025). These figures are still well above the 2007 peak of 12,756.

When you consider the foal crop in Australia has dropped from 18,840 to 11,265 in that period, and even accounting for more horses being imported into Australia, it is clear that there is a much higher rate of horses being bought and sold.

That indicates horses are being traded many times over, which looks good on a sales company’s balance sheet in terms of commissions but makes it more difficult to ascertain the overall value of available bloodstock.

But the importance of liquidity in encouraging investment can also not be underestimated.

And what about the broader question of the drop in value at the top end of the broodmare market? There is no hiding from the 15.4 per cent slump in average across the two live mares sales.

A drop had been predicted by the sales companies, who realised that the top-end depth was weaker this year. There just weren’t the multiple Group 1-winning must-haves of previous years.

But it is also clear that Yulong’s heavy acquisition cycle in recent years has changed, and demand is not as strong as it once was, when it was buying and bidding on almost every second lot in the post-pandemic period. This is not due to a lack of confidence in their business model; it is just a natural cycle for a breeder with over 800 broodmares.

Also, when you think of the best mares that retired off the track this season, it is Yulong’s own Via Sistina who stands out. She would arguably be worth eight figures if put on the market, but that won’t ever happen.

Given the quality of horses that Yulong has purchased, you get the feeling that the phenomenon of owning the most commercial race filly in the land will become commonplace in years to come.

There are also suggestions that the private market has become much stronger as buyers look to avoid the competition in the sales ring. An example is the rumoured $5.5 million privately paid for Blue Diamond winner Streisand.

However, the $5.6 million Coolmore paid for Chayan, who Streisand beat in that race and the Golden Slipper, might be a salient lesson in the value of a live sale for those willing to sell. It will be interesting to see what 2027 brings.