Irish bloodstock sales

The number of horses in training and racehorse owners in Ireland rose year-on-year in 2021, and were among numerous positive figures released by Horse Racing Ireland reflecting on the state of the Irish Thoroughbred industry. There were 10,579 horses in training in Ireland last year, which was up 14.4% from 2020 and 18.2% from 2019. Likewise, the owner retention rate of 80.7% up was 9.6% on 2020 and 8% on 2019. There were 1,062 new owners registered in 2021, up 36.1% on 2020. This desire for horse ownership was also...

Horse Racing Ireland on Friday released its mid-year figures, and with indicators down across the board they highlighted the severe repercussions the COVID-19 pandemic has had. Betting with on-course bookmakers and the Tote was down 73.9% through the first half of the year; the public has not been allowed on an Irish racecourse since early March, and thus attendance has been down by 80%. Eighty-seven fixtures were lost between March and June, and severe interruption to the sales calendar meant public auction sales in Ireland are down 87.3% year-on-year. The...