Can Big Brown Save Horse Racing?
More people are betting on thoroughbreds today; they just aren't at the track.
June 6, 2008— -- Millions of television viewers are expected to tune in Saturday to watch Big Brown attempt to be the first horse to win the Triple Crown since 1978.
Another 100,000 or more will be at New York's Belmont Park watching the race in person.
It will be a day with numerous big — and small — bets. It might turn out to be a historic day in horseracing. The one thing it won't be is a typical day at the track.
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The New York Racing Association estimates more than 100,000 fans will show up for the race. Smarty Jones in 2004 was the last horse to try for the Triple Crown, and nearly 120,000 people packed the track's grandstand.
Compare that to Wednesday, when a measly 2,000 people came out to the track.
Big-name events such as the Belmont Stakes bring out fans and their money. But during the rest of the year, fewer people are showing up at the track.
Back in 1990, there were 73,000 thoroughbred races across the country, according to the Jockey Club, an industry trade group. Last year, the number of races had plunged to 51,000.
But that doesn't mean that the industry is losing money. In fact, more money is being wagered now than in the past. In 1990, $9.4 billion was wagered on races. Today that stands at nearly $15 billion.
So why the disconnect? More and more gamblers are placing their bets over the phone, Internet or from off-track facilities. So on any given day, there might only be, say, 500 people in a grandstand built for 10,000 but hundreds — if not thousands — will be betting on that race from around the country.
"It is killing the live-track, on-track experience, which some might say is killing the industry because maybe one day races will be run in front of no people. But at the same time, you have a lot of money coming in and the convenience of it may be bringing in more money," said Tom Law, managing editor of the Thoroughbred Times, a weekly trade publication.
Out of the nearly $15 billion wagered last year, only $1.7 billion in bets were placed at the track where the race was occurring, according to the Jockey Club.
