Declining Handle Highlights Structural Strain on American Racing
Total betting on American thoroughbred racing continued to decrease in 2025, the sixth year of declines in the last seven years. The total handle declined to $11.03 billion, its lowest point since 2020, representing a 2.1% decrease from 2024. The handle was down 27.3% from the high set in 2003 at $15.18 billion.
Data from the racing database platform Equibase for the end of the year indicate that the pace of decline accelerated. Wagering in December was down 7.3% from 2024, a larger drop than in the previous couple of months and a major contributor to the yearly decrease.
The number of racing days also decreased to 5.2% in 2025, down from 3,787 in 2024 to 3,590, a further reduction from 6,578 racing days in 2001. The number of racing events also decreased, down 4.7% from the previous year to 29,401. Because the number of racing events was lower, some efficiency areas showed positive results.
The average handle per racing day grew 3.27% higher, with handle rising to $3.07 million, and average field size edged up from 7.45 to 7.47. Those gains, however, were not enough to offset broader declines in participation and supply across the best sports betting sites and beyond.
Purse levels also moved lower. Total prize money slipped 2.4% to $1.28 billion, the first annual decline since 2020, when pandemic-related shutdowns sharply reduced race days.
The prior year had set a record at $1.31 billion.
All in all, a tough year for the best horse racing betting sites.
Hawthorne suspension reflects financial stress at track level
The continuous decline of national wagering figures has also been mirrored at the local level, most visibly in Illinois, where the Illinois Racing Board ordered Hawthorne Race Course to halt live racing and off-track betting operations temporarily. The directive followed multiple instances in which purse checks issued to horsemen were returned unpaid, and the track failed to secure required bonding for the 2026 season.
The suspension affected both Thoroughbred and Standardbred racing, although sportsbook wagering at Hawthorne locations remained operational. Notices posted at off-track betting sites confirmed that pari-mutuel wagering was shut down for the affected weekend.
The Illinois Harness Horsemen’s Association reported that unpaid checks had occurred twice within a matter of weeks. Track management maintained that the earlier bounced checks were due to processing errors and said replacement payments had been issued. However, regulators moved forward despite the requested bank documentation not being produced.
The order came despite the Racing Board having approved Hawthorne for 63 Thoroughbred race days and 34 harness dates in 2026 through its affiliate, Suburban Downs.
Hawthorne’s broader operation had already been under pressure. Its off-track betting network was severely limited after several racing organizations cut off simulcast signals over unpaid settlement obligations.
The situation first became public last spring when Churchill Downs Inc. terminated its simulcast feed, preventing local wagering on major events, including the Kentucky Derby. Since Arlington Park closed in 2021, Hawthorne has been the Chicago area’s only remaining racetrack.
