Horse Racing Ireland CEO Suzanne Eade highlighted the positive health of Irish racing in 2025, citing increases across key metrics such as racecourse attendances, on-course betting, sponsorship, prize-money, field sizes, and owner retention. Attendances rose 6% to 1.316 million across 390 fixtures, while Tote turnover increased by 7.2% to €81.3 million. Bloodstock sales saw the largest growth, up 14% to €225.4 million. Major festivals like Punchestown and the Irish Derby weekend experienced significant attendance gains, and commercial sponsorship grew by 2.9% to €7 million.

Prize-money increased slightly to €70.76 million, with Irish-trained horses earning more internationally despite a small dip in Britain. Field sizes averaged 11.51 runners per race, with a stable number of total runners and a slight increase in owners and owner retention. Eade emphasized that these positive trends reflect the sport’s broad appeal and that ongoing strategic plans aim to build on these gains, addressing challenges to ensure continued growth and stronger results in the future.