Study Committee

Preservation of the HOPE

Scholarship Program

Alexander M. Waldrop
President & CEO
National Thoroughbred Racing Association

National Thoroughbred Racing

Association
Membership includes:
Racetracks
Owners
Breeders
Trainers
Horseplayers
Affiliated horse racing and breeding associations
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Advantages of Horse Racing

Highly entertaining, social activity
Labor intensive agri-business
Passionate fan base everybody loves horses
Challenging intellectually
Prestigious ownership opportunities
Environmentally friendly
Beneficial federal legislation - IHA

U.S. Horse Racing Metrics

50 million fans
7 million core fans who attend and wager regularly
More than 60 Thoroughbred racetracks
Nearly 90% of all money wagered is bet remotely on
televised races
More than 1,000 off-track wagering sites
Only U.S. sport to conduct legal online wagering, now
a $3 billion market
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Horseplayers
National Handicapping Championship
Average age 52
Highly educated (21% graduate degrees)
Affluent (average income $117,000)
$117,000
Inclined to travel and wager
Attracted to the intellectual challenge

Horse Racing Globally

Global sport present in 60 countries
U.S. horse racing accounts for about 14% of
global wagering
U.S. a leader in race horse breeding
worldwide

Horse Racing Big Events

Triple Crown stronger than ever
Attendance at the Triple Crown events was
392,193 (including record KYD and PREAK)
Handle on the Triple Crown was $413 million
NBC TV viewership for Triple Crown was 46.9
million

Strong race meetings coast to coast

Keeneland
Saratoga
Del Mar
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Horse Racing Big Events

Breeders Cup World Championships
2 days, 15 races, $26 million in purses
100,000+ attendees
Best horses, trainers, and owners from
across the globe
Culmination of Thoroughbred racings
season
Often decides Horse of the Year and other
prestigious Eclipse Award categories
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Horse Racing Big Events

Breeders Cup 2013 Economic Impact
Total direct spending $39.5 million
Total economic impact
$64.9 million in business sales,
532 full-time equivalent jobs, and
$25.9 million in labor income, including indirect
and induced impacts
$4.8 million in state and local taxes
Source: Tourism Economics study of 2013 Santa
Anita, CA event

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Racing Industry Jobs

Track employees
Breeding farms
Trainers
Grooms/hot walkers/exercise riders
Jockeys/Drivers
Veterinarians
Services and suppliers (e.g. farriers, feed)
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Economic Impact of
Horse Racing Industry
$11 Billion Wagered Annually Nationwide
$90 Billion worldwide
375,000 horse racing jobs nationally
$37 billion in economic activity
$1.9 billion generated in tax revenue

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Economic Impact of
Georgia Equine Industry
173KGeorgia
households own horses
173K
Contributes$868.7MM to Georgia Economy
6th most valuable commodity in Georgia
All horses valued at $413MM
Roughly 3.5% of all Georgia commodities.
Source: GA Agricultural Commodity
Commission for Equine (2008)

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Why Does Georgia Need

Horse Racing?

Georgia breeders and owners now raise their horses in

Florida, South Carolina or Kentucky

Georgia racing fans are visiting racetracks in Kentucky,

Florida, Louisiana and elsewhere

Atlanta is the largest metropolitan area in the U.S.

without a racetrack (NYC, Los Angeles, Chicago,
Dallas, Philly, Houston, Washington, DC, Miami)

All of these factors are costing Georgia jobs,

tourism and related tax revenue
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