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  • Nov, 2020

    Interest in horse racing

    Q. How would you describe your level of interest in horse racing?

      Total Age   Difference to previous years
      18-34 35-54 55+   Nov’19 Nov’18 Oct’11
    High interest 12% 14% 15% 8%   9% 8% 6%
    Moderate interest 16% 22% 19% 9%   22% 20% 16%
    Low interest 24% 27% 23% 22%   24% 26% 33%
    No interest 45% 32% 42% 60%   44% 44% 44%
    Don’t know 3% 5% 1% 2%   1% 2% 1%
    Base (n) 1,063 319 371 373   1,033 1,028 1,046
    • Just over one in 10 people say they have a high interest in horse racing (12%) while 45% have no interest. Interest in horse racing is consistent with previous years, with no significant shift in interest.
    • Older people are more likely than younger people aged 18-34 to have no interest in horse racing (60% among those aged 55+, to 32% of 18-34-year olds).
  • Nov, 2020

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    Betting activity and horse racing

    Q. Which of the following best describes your regular betting activity?

      Total Age   Gender
      18-34 35-54 55+   Male Female
    I regularly bet on horse races and will place a bet on the Melbourne Cup 16% 18% 20% 10%   25% 8%
    I rarely bet on horse races but will watch the Melbourne Cup and place a bet 26% 28% 26% 23%   25% 26%
    I will watch the Melbourne Cup but will not place a bet 26% 17% 26% 35%   25% 28%
    I have never been interested in the Melbourne Cup and will not place a bet 32% 36% 28% 32%   26% 38%
    Base (n) 1,063 319 371 373   530 533
    • Around a third of people are not interested in the Melbourne Cup and will not place a bet on Tuesday (32%). A quarter (26%) will place a bet on the race, despite rarely betting and the same number will watch the race without betting (26%). The remaining 16% say they regularly bet on horse races and will place a bet on the Melbourne Cup.
    • Men are more likely than women to bet regularly on horse racing (25% to 8%).
    • Despite having less interest in horse racing than other age groups, people aged over 55 are just as likely to watch the Melbourne Cup or place a bet on the race (68%).
  • Oct, 2011

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    Regulation of Gambling

    Q. For each of the following forms of gambling, which do you think need more or less regulation?

    Needs more regulation Needs less regulation Current regulation is about right Don’t know Needs more regulation 27 Apr 11
    Online gambling in general 67% 4% 17% 12% 68%
    Poker machines 52% 5% 35% 8% 62%
    Casinos 47% 4% 40% 9% 53%
    Betting on sport e.g. football, cricket 52% 4% 34% 10% 46%
    Betting on horse racing 35% 5% 51% 9% 37%
    Lotto 15% 6% 70% 9% 20%

    More than half the respondents think there needs to be more regulation of online gambling (67%), poker machines (52%) and betting on sport (52%).

    Support for more regulation of poker machines has dropped 10% since this question was last asked in April.

    By vote, 67% of Greens voters, 61% of Labor voters and 43% of Liberal/National voters support more regulation of poker machines. 44% of Liberal/National voters think current regulation is about right, compared to 28% of Labor voters and 25% of Greens voters. There are no substantial differences by age, gender or income.

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  • Oct, 2011

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    Interest in Horseracing

    Q. How would you describe your level of interest in horse racing?

    Total Vote Labor Vote Lib/Nat Vote Greens
    High interest 6% 8% 6% 2%
    Moderate interest 16% 18% 17% 14%
    Low interest 33% 34% 34% 40%
    No interest 44% 41% 42% 44%
    Don’t know 1% * * *

    6% say they have a high interest in horse racing and 16% have a moderate interest. 77% say they have low or no interest.

    Those with most interest are men (26% high/moderate), full-time workers (27%) and those earning $1,000-1,600 pw (29%). There were no significant differences by age group.

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