By almost any measure, there has never been so much money in racing. Returns from wagering have grown precipitously over the last decade, particularly benefitting the Principal Racing Authorities (PRAs).
In 2012/13, Racing NSW’s stated revenue/income in its annual report was $104.6 million. Ten years later in 2022/23, that amount stood at $406 million. Similarly, Racing Victoria has grown its topline revenue from $312 million to $554 million in the space of a decade.
Comparisons between the two jurisdictions, while tempting, are difficult to make as their funding models have several major differences. However, the key similarity they do share is that both Racing NSW and Racing Victoria have benefitted from a combination of the ‘race fields’ levy and a substantial increase in thoroughbred wagering.
Over the past 10 years, thoroughbred turnover in Australia grew from $14.5 billion to $26.4 billion, fuelling a similar massive growth in prize money, which has jumped from $554 million to $1.07 billion.
This post is for our free members
Thanks for your interest in The Straight. It looks like you are trying to access a free members article via an in-app browser on X, Facebook or LinkedIn. For the best experience, and instant access, sign on via the Social Sign In links below. You should only need to do this once.
If you wish to access or create an email-based account, please provide your email below. You will receive a link to click by email which will then open in your device’s native browser.
