Records Broken At Jockey Club Racecourses

Jockey Club Racecourses attracted record crowd numbers in 2015, according to new figures, with total attendances surpassing 1.9 million for the first time.

Jockey Club Racecourses, which runs the likes of the Cheltenham Festival, the Crabbie’s Grand National and The Investec Derby within its portfolio of 15 racecourses, attracted 1,946,644 people to 336 horseracing fixtures staged in 2015.

This represents a year-on-year total attendance increase of 8.5%, despite staging 26 fewer fixtures compared to 2014 when 1,794,797 spectators attended 362 events. Average crowds per fixture grew and were up 16.9% on the previous year.

The previous record attendance at Jockey Club Racecourses was recorded in 2011 when 1,897,453 racegoers attended 365 fixtures – 29 fixtures more than in the year just completed.

These figures are based on official data submitted to the Horserace Betting Levy Board. This does not include spectators on ‘The Hill’ at Epsom Downs, where thousands attend The Investec Derby Festival for free.

Paul Fisher, group managing director of Jockey Club Racecourses, said: “More people than ever before went racing with The Jockey Club in 2015 as a result of efforts to promote our thrilling sport and the experience we offer nationwide, and then giving people an excellent day out when they come racing with us. We must credit the horses and horsemen at the heart of our sport at the same time as our hardworking teams whose efforts allow us to reinvest all profits from staging our racedays back into British racing to support its long-term health.”         

The largest events were the four day Cheltenham Festival, which attracted 248,464 people, the three day Crabbie’s Grand National Festival, which was attended by 142,579, and the two day Investec Derby Festival, which welcomed around 160,000 spectators (only 53,475 of which are recorded in the Levy Board figures). However, attendances increased across the board at The Jockey Club’s tracks.