In terms of money wagered, the industry is growing, with bets rising from R4,68bn in the 12 months to March 2002 to R8,12bn in 2010/2011, according to the National Gambling Board – writes Stafford Thomas in the Financial Mail
For over 50 years horse racing rode high as the only form of legal gambling in SA. This came to an end 15 years ago, when the liberalisation of gambling heralded a decline of the racing industry.
In terms of money wagered, the industry is growing, with bets rising from R4,68bn in the 12 months to March 2002 to R8,12bn in 2010/2011, according to the National Gambling Board. But in what is now a far larger gambling market horse racing has been the big loser, garnering a mere 3,6% of total money wagered in 2010/2011. Casinos raked in R209bn — 90% of total gambling spend (excluding the lottery) — but even limited-payment machines, into which gamblers fed R8,7bn, fared better than horse racing.
Also declining are most areas of infrastructure supporting horse racing. This was highlighted in a study by research firm Economics Information Services (EIS) for horse racing body Racing SA. For example, between 1998 and 2008 the number of registered breeders fell by 50% to 453 while the number of registered race horses fell by 13% to 6455.
Phumelela CEO Rian du Plessis believes the trend is reversible and that horse racing can win a bigger share of the gambling market. The industry’s largest player, Phumelela owns five race tracks .
