Equibase, North American horse racing's official database, has released wagering statistics for the month of July and year to date, with comparisons to the COVID-19 influenced numbers from 2020 and pre-COVID stats from 2019. Equibase continues to supply monthly statistics during the pandemic after typically disseminating the information on a quarterly basis.
The economic indicators show a mixed bag of results, with July wagering up by 0.33 percent compared to July 2020 despite the addition of nearly 12 percent more racing days and 7.65 percent more races.
Wagering numbers undoubtedly were tempered by the nearly nine percent decline in average field size in July 2021, 6.95 horses per race compared with 7.62 in 2020. That contributed to a 10 percent decline in average wagering per race day. With fewer race days in July 2020 and for the first seven months of the year due to COVID shutdowns of some tracks, field size was greater in 2020.
Despite the stagnant July wagering, total purses jumped by more than 22 percent, with average purses per race day up by almost 10 percent.
Comparisons to July 2019 appear more favorable, with wagering up by almost 17 percent despite an eight percent drop in race days and starts. Average field size declined by 2.33 percent from July 2019 to July 2021.
Year-to-date figure comparisons to both 2020 and 2019 tell a similar story: wagering is up double digits, but average field size has declined (though by less than one percent compared to 2019 year-to-date when there were 10 percent more race days). Total purses are up year-to-date by 51 percent compared to 2020 where there were 36 percent fewer races but they are down by 3.35 percent compared with 2019.
| July 2021 vs. July 2020 | |||
| Indicator | July 2021 | July 2020 | % Change |
| Wagering on U.S. Races* | $1,101,617,446 | $1,098,021,143 | +0.33% |
| U.S. Purses | $110,489,273 | $90,220,894 | +22.47% |
| U.S. Race Days | 445 | 398 | +11.81% |
| U.S. Races | 3,531 | 3,280 | +7.65% |
| U.S. Starts | 24,527 | 24,984 | -1.83% |
| Average Field Size | 6.95 | 7.62 | -8.81% |
| Average Wagering Per Race Day | $2,475,545 | $2,758,847 | -10.27% |
| Average Purses Per Race Day | $248,291 | $226,686 | +9.53% |
| YTD 2021 vs. YTD 2020 | |||
| Indicator | YTD 2021 | YTD 2020 | % Change |
| Wagering on U.S. Races* | $7,379,543,305 | $6,152,548,050 | +19.94% |
| U.S. Purses | $625,643,005 | $414,389,542 | +50.98% |
| U.S. Race Days | 2,326 | 1,699 | +36.90% |
| U.S. Races | 19,323 | 14,186 | +36.21% |
| U.S. Starts | 141,830 | 113,058 | +25.45% |
| Average Field Size | 7.34 | 7.97 | -7.90% |
| Average Wagering Per Race Day | $3,172,633 | $3,621,276 | -12.39% |
| Average Purses Per Race Day | $268,978 | $243,902 | +10.28% |
2019 Comparisons:
| July 2021 vs. July 2019 | |||
| Indicator | July 2021 | July 2019 | % Change |
| Wagering on U.S. Races* | $1,101,617,446 | $942,243,633 | +16.91% |
| U.S. Purses | $110,489,273 | $103,342,574 | +6.92% |
| U.S. Race Days | 445 | 484 | -8.06% |
| U.S. Races | 3,531 | 3,742 | -5.64% |
| U.S. Starts | 24,527 | 26,612 | -7.83% |
| Average Field Size | 6.95 | 7.11 | -2.33% |
| Average Wagering Per Race Day | $2,475,545 | $1,946,784 | +27.16% |
| Average Purses Per Race Day | $248,291 | $213,518 | +16.29% |
| YTD 2021 vs. YTD 2019 | |||
| Indicator | YTD 2021 | YTD 2019 | % Change |
| Wagering on U.S. Races* | $7,379,543,305 | $6,615,017,905 | +11.56% |
| U.S. Purses | $625,643,005 | $647,344,706 | -3.35% |
| U.S. Race Days | 2,326 | 2,588 | -10.12% |
| U.S. Races | 19,323 | 21,199 | -8.85% |
| U.S. Starts | 141,830 | 156,851 | -9.58% |
| Average Field Size | 7.34 | 7.40 | -0.80% |
| Average Wagering Per Race Day | $3,172,633 | $2,556,035 | +24.12% |
| Average Purses Per Race Day | $268,978 | $250,133 | +7.53% |
* Includes worldwide commingled wagering on U.S. races.
The post Equibase Economic Indicators For July: Decline In Field Size Affecting Wagering appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.
