Victorian racetracks will have an increased TAB presence at selected meetings under a deal coinciding with the wagering giant experiencing a growth in cash wagering.
A three-year agreement between Tabcorp and Racing Victoria has already come into effect, and an expanding offering will include the synthetic season finale at Pakenham on Friday night and the Sheep Hills Cup meeting at Warracknabeal on Saturday.
The arrangement concludes a period of industry uncertainty following Racing Victoria's (RV) decision to provide on-course totalisator facilities across the state, which ended on July 31.
RV funded the operational costs of opening TAB windows across 140 meetings from December 1, as a result of Tabcorp’s decision to withdraw its services when a longstanding joint venture deal with the regulator ended.
From Friday, a TAB option for punters will be available on 310 Victorian meetings this season, representing a 60 per cent increase in 2024/2025.
The announcement came ahead of Tabcorp on Wednesday reporting an overall jump in revenue for the past financial year, with cash betting revealed as a growth area, increasing 17.5 per cent to almost $966 million as it outperformed the digital side of the business.
But the financial terms of Tabcorp’s return with an additional on-course outlet service in Victoria remain confidential.
RV says the details around funding and costs are commercial in confidence
Since Tabcorp withdrew its services last year, in response to changing customer habits and an end to the joint venture, an RV-funded interim solution has provided TAB services for an average of 17 meetings per month.
Under the new agreement, the number of meetings is expected to increase to an average of 25 per month in 2025/2026.
All meetings run under the auspices of the Victoria Racing Club, the Melbourne Racing Club and Southside Racing will have an on-course TAB offering.
The deal also provides coverage for transferred fixtures staged by the Moonee Valley Racing Club as well as all country and picnic cups, most of the Geelong season and a broader range of country feature days, including Christmas and holiday meetings.
Negotiations for the new agreement involved RV, Country Racing Victoria and Tabcorp
“The TAB are a unique part of the on-track experience, a belief shared by all parties in coming to this agreement,” RV chief operating officer Vaughan Lynch said.
“The multi-year agreement will see an immediate increase in the number of race meetings covered, then maintained across seasons 2026/2027 and 2027/2028.
“We’re thankful to the clubs, Country Racing Victoria and Tabcorp for coming to the table to reach an agreement that will see TAB on-course services offered at 310 Victorian race meetings per season.”
Bren O’Brien
Tabcorp’s initial decision to abandon its on-course retail product came as a response to a rapidly growing digital market that has changed how punters prefer to wager.
“Tabcorp is transforming to meet the changing needs of our customers,” a spokesman for the ASX-listed company said at the time.
“As part of that evolution, we will be reducing the number of cash terminals at Victorian racetracks because a majority of customers have told us they want to bet digitally.”
Warwick Barr
The move came amid significant cost-cutting measures within a strategy reset at Tabcorp only a few months into Gillon McLachlan’s tenure as chief executive.
Tabcorp announced a $1.36 billion loss for the 2023/24 financial year, revealing a non-cash impairment charge of $1.38 billion due to a sluggish wagering market and additional taxes it pays in NSW and South Australia.
But on news that Tabcorp generated $36 million profit with $39 million in operational savings in 2024/2025, the company’s share price jumped almost 26 per cent to 88c on Wednesday.
Bren O’Brien
