Australians Still Betting Big on the Melbourne Cup, Even as Horse Racing Interest Drops

A range of factors appear to be driving the slide in weekly racing wagers. Some of the biggest bodies in the country, including Racing Victoria, point to a rising cost of living in Australia, higher interest rates, less generous promotions (notably fewer “free bets”), and a shift towards other casino games like pokies and sports betting as drivers of gambling activity.

The number of young Australians showing interest in the Cup has been dropping in recent years, which suggests that younger audiences are not interested in horse racing and prefer other forms of gambling.

Another major problem is promotions. In Victoria, the amount wagered on free bets in the spring dropped from A$184.6 million to A$166.7 million year-on-year, which is a decline of nearly 10% (even though bookmaker margins rose from 14.2% to 15.4%). Considering how important promotions are to bettors, it’s clear that fewer bonuses and incentives have taken some of the excitement out of betting.

Promotions play a big role in how often casual punters place bets, so when those offers dry up, many simply bet less or switch to platforms and games that feel more rewarding, like international online casinos and sports betting apps that continue to advertise more aggressively and offer better bonuses.

Despite the lower betting interest in other horse races, the Melbourne Cup shows no signs of slowing down, and for a good reason. It remains a major event that attracts casual punters, first-time bettors, and people who don’t normally follow racing.

According to gambling researcher Charles Livingstone from Monash University, the Melbourne Cup is “an event for people who don’t know anything about horses and a great marketing opportunity” for operators.

In other words, the Melbourne Cup is less about the sport and more about the spectacle and the betting opportunity for punters who don’t usually bet on horse races. Statistics show that the Melbourne Cup Carnival generated over A$1 billion in economic activity last year, with A$502 million flowing into Victoria alone.

While the Melbourne Cup continues to thrive, the overall racing business model is clearly in decline. With weekly wagering volumes dropping, industry bodies are looking to turn the Melbourne Cup interest from one big day event into sustainable, year-round engagement.

That means lifestyle activations and hospitality upgrades aimed at younger audiences and non-traditional horse racing punters.

Operators are also changing their tactics. Major gambling groups like Flutter Entertainment (Sportsbet) and Entain plc (Ladbrokes/Neds) have both described Australia’s racing market as “soft” and are shifting their investment into stronger areas like online casino games and sports betting, which have only been growing.

While racing wagering has shown declines of up to -7% for some operators, sports and pokies have been breaking records year on year.

One key reason pokies and sports betting continue to grow is the sheer volume of promotions that operators offer. If racing operators want to bring life back into the horse racing sector, they’ll need to ramp up similar bonuses and promotional offers. Otherwise, they risk they risk losing even more punters.