Monday, 20 November 2017: Victoria has built a strong foundation for future investment in the growth of racing with a surplus for 2017 continuing a trend of positive results.
Victoria has built a strong foundation for future investment in the growth of racing, with a strong surplus for 2017 continuing a trend of positive results.
At today’s Annual General Meeting (AGM), Racing Victoria (RV) announced its financial results for the year ending 30 June 2017 (FY17) which showed healthy growth in revenue, wagering, prizemoney and participation.
Highlights of the Annual Report included:
[b]Total surplus of $9.2 million:[/b] Down from $28 million in FY16 due to increased investments in prizemoney, media rights aggregation and club funding
[b]Total revenue of $408.28 million:[/b] An increase of 1.8 per cent on FY16 and one of the highest of any Australian sporting organisation
[b]Total annual domestic wagering turnover of $6.23 billion:[/b] Up by 9.4 per cent and the first-time turnover has surpassed $6 billion
[b]Total wagering and race fields revenue of $351.38 million:[/b] Up 3.5 per cent on FY16
[b]Total prizemoney and bonuses on offer increased to $215 million for the 2017-18 season:[/b] An increase of $40 million since 2015
[b]Total of over $10 million invested across 40 infrastructure projects:[/b] In partnership with State Government, Country Racing Victoria and the clubs.
[B]Future Fund has increased to $61.53 million:[/b] Established in FY16 to secure future investment in the industry.
[b]Nation high attendances of 1.34 million with the number of owners rising to 68,469:[/b]
New RV Chairman, Brian Kruger, welcomed the latest financial result, saying it provided strong funding for the industry now while continuing to improve the ability of Victorian racing to invest in future growth for the industry.
“This is a strong result with revenue, wagering, prizemoney, participation and returns to clubs all increasing for the betterment of all stakeholders. Victorian racing is in a strong and healthy financial position and it is an exciting and rewarding time to be involved in our great sport,” Mr Kruger said.
“Increases in revenue and a $9.2 million surplus reinforces the turnaround in Racing Victoria’s financial fortunes over the past six years and underlines the successful collaboration between Racing Victoria, the clubs and key stakeholders in leveraging our combined strength to engage more people, more often in our sport.
“What is exciting for the future is that we are working even more closely with the clubs, having recently agreed to a three-year funding outcome with the metropolitan clubs that brings certainty, stability and the opportunity for us all to focus our time on building the sport.
“Our country clubs are the best funded nationally and we need to continue to strive to ensure that they remain so as they deliver 80 per cent of our meetings and support our broad participant base.
“We have a Future Fund that has increased to $61 million which will provide an opportunity for the industry to make long-term strategic investments that ensures Victorian racing is best placed to attract and engage with future generations.
“This positive financial result has allowed us to increase prizemoney for the 2017-18 season by $16.3 million meaning a record $215 million in prizemoney and bonuses is on offer for our owners, trainers and jockeys. That’s a $40 million rise since 2015.
“The customer remains at the centre of our decision-making and we’re pleased that punters, who invested a record $6.23 billion on Victorian racing in FY17, have benefited from the introduction of minimum bet rules for wagering operators, the launch of the Victorian Official Price service and now free sectional times for all TAB meetings.
“The integrity of the sport remains a primary focus for Racing Victoria which is why our investment in integrity also grew in FY17 allowing a 9 per cent increase in our drug testing and more resources for our Compliance Assurance Team and Control Room.”
Mr Kruger explained that a total of 14,140 equine samples were collected over the 2016-17 season, with only nine returning positive swabs to prohibited substances.
Mr Kruger also said the investment in Racing.com continued to provide a valuable platform for the industry, with Racing.com producing more than 3,500 hours of live television which was accessible to over 95 per cent of the Australian population through free-to-air broadcast on Channel 78.
The digital audience continues to grow, now with over 200,000 subscribers, and in FY17 customers engaged with Racing.com’s digital products more than 20 million times, consuming more than 5.25 million videos on demand and watching a total of 625,000 hours of video streaming.
“More people can watch Victorian racing anywhere, anytime than ever before with Racing.com, the nation’s only free-to-air sporting channel, supported in FY17 by digital streaming partnerships with seven wagering operators,” Mr Kruger said.
“Our media strategy has remained integral in stimulating a 3.5 per cent growth in wagering revenue despite market trends away from pari-mutuel and retail betting which saw a decline in returns from the Tabcorp Joint Venture.”
Major initiatives in FY17 included the expansion of Thursday night meetings, consolidation of a fourth standalone Saturday meeting in country Victoria as well as further investment in 40 infrastructure projects which all helped drive the 9.4 per cent increase in wagering turnover.
“In delivering our results, I want to recognise the passion and commitment of the clubs, our participants and our customers, with record punter interest and the number of owners growing to 68,469 in FY17. Without that support, the industry would not have been able to deliver the results it has,” Mr Kruger said.
“I also want to thank all stakeholders for backing Racing Victoria’s strategy of investing for the future, including the ongoing investment in infrastructure that contributed to a 1.5 per cent increase in attendances for country racing during the year, delivering nation high attendances of 1.34 million.”
Mr Kruger also paid tribute to Acting Chairman, Mike Hirst, and Chief Executive, Giles Thompson, for their roles in delivering the positive financial results.
“I want to acknowledge the leadership of Mike as Acting Chairman and Giles and his team for their contribution over the year. All work tirelessly with the best interests of Victorian racing at the heart of their decision-making and they should feel proud of the results delivered today,” Mr Kruger said.
“Finally, I would like to thank all Directors that served on the Racing Victoria Board during the year, as well as former Chief Executive, Bernard Saundry. Your efforts have left the industry in a strong position to continue to grow and prosper for the benefit of all stakeholders.”
