Turnover on Hong Kong racing increased during the just completed season, ending a one-year wagering blip, with overseas punters the major contributor to boosting betting on Sha Tin and Happy Valley meetings.
With the 2024/25 season ending on Wednesday, the Hong Kong Jockey Club revealed HK$138.851 billion (A$27.018 billion) had been bet on its local product and overseas meetings over the past year.
International bettors wagered more than HK$34 billion, including World Pool meetings, a jump of 9.9 per cent year-on-year, while Hong Kong punters also lifted their spend, climbing 1 per cent to HK$104.847 billion.
Figures released by the Jockey Club show that turnover on its 88 race meetings for the season just gone also went up 3.1 per cent to HK$125.736 billion, with local (1 per cent increase year-on-year) and comingling (up 10.1 per cent) helping reverse the downturn experienced during the 2023/24 season.
This season’s overall turnover figure is down on the record 2022/23 season when HK$141.141 billion was bet on local and overseas race meetings, but up on the HK$134.745 billion wagered 12 months ago.
Jockey Club chief executive Winfried Engelbrecht-Breges credited a range of initiatives, including the HK$1.5 million private purchase bonus scheme, an increase in travel subsidies to offset the cost of retiring horses, in increasing the field sizes at Happy Valley and Sha Tin.
"Thanks to these and other initiatives in the 2024/25 season, Hong Kong's horse population significantly increased from 1203 horses in June 2024 to 1296 (as of 30 June),” Engelbrecht-Breges said.
“Notably, the number of horses in Class 3 and above rose from 414 in 2023/24 to 441 in 2024/25. In addition, applications for 2026/27 Horse Import Permits increased by 11.9 per cent, with submissions for both Private Purchase (PP) and Private Purchase Griffin (PPG) permits, while the success of syndicate ownership continues to stand out."
The Jockey Club has run 88 meetings for the season for the past four years, but it conducted 847 races during 2024/25, 16 more than the previous season and 12 more than the record season of turnover two seasons ago.
Not only was turnover up on Hong Kong racing, but so too were the crowds on course.
Attendance increased 13.6 per cent to 1.717 million for the 88 meetings, with weekend venue Sha Tin proving particularly popular with punters. Its on-track crowds improved 11.7 per cent to an average attendance of 22,900.
Warwick Barr
Happy Valley, which generally hosts midweek night meetings, also had a 3.9 per cent increase in overall attendance, with 548,000 people attending the city venue during the season.
“It's been an amazing season, with outstanding performances by top horses that have truly captured the imagination of fans not just in Hong Kong but around the world,” said the long-serving Jockey Club CEO who credited mainland China and overseas visitors for helping increase attendances.
“These achievements strengthen the position of Hong Kong racing as a world-class sport and entertainment experience.
“They have also made an important contribution to Hong Kong tourism as well as underlining Hong Kong's vital role as a centre for East-West exchange."
Matt Stewart
