U.S. Handle

Betting on U.S. horse racing had its worst month so far this year in August as handle fell by $87,216,418 when compared to August 2022 figures. The decline was 7.3%, the sharpest drop in a month since December 2022. A total of $1,107,146,014 was bet on the sport during this August, while the 2022 handle figure was $1,194,362,432. In month-over-month figures, it was the sharpest drop since December when handle fell by 7.52%. While the Saratoga meet spills over in to July and September, the majority of it is run...

Figures released last week by Equibase showed that U.S. handle declined by 5.21% in February. This comes after handle declined by 7.19% in January. For the year, that's a drop off of 6.22% and, if those numbers hold up throughout the year, total handle will be off by $750 million and the year-over-year percentage decline will be the worst the sport has suffered since 2010. And it's not just that racing has gotten off to a slow, reversible start this year when it comes to wagering. Whatever is going on,...