How many Australians will put money on the Everest and Melbourne Cup?

The Everest and the Melbourne Cup are the two richest horse races in Australia. New YouGov data reveals how many Aussies are planning to tune in and place bets on the upcoming events.

Poll data shows 13% of Australians will bet on the Everest horse race, either at a betting shop (5%), at an online bookmaker (6%), as part of a sweepstake with friends (5%), or will place bets on Everest Day, not just on the race itself (5%). The Everest, the richest turf race on the planet, is a relatively new event – its inauguration was in 2017 which explains why 38% still haven’t heard of it.

That’s in stark contrast to the Melbourne Cup, which started in 1861. Roughly three in ten of Australians are poised to bet on the event in some capacity (29%). One in ten will place a bet in-person (10%), roughly the same proportion will do so online (9%), one in six will bet with friends (16%), and one in 11 will place multiple bets on race day and not just on the main event (8%).

(Note that each of these betting intentions don’t add up to the combined total as respondents may have chosen one or several options.)

How many will watch: Around one in ten Aussies intend to watch tune in to The Everest Cup live, either on TV, on the internet or on the radio (9%). Fewer say they’re interested in the race, but probably won’t watch it live (6%) and roughly the same proportion enjoy Everest Day, but not particularity interested in the race itself.

Viewership intentions are higher for the long-running Melbourne Cup. Close to one in five Aussies will tune in live (19%), while a further 9% are interested in who wins, but likely won’t watch it live. About one in ten (11%) say they enjoy race day but aren’t overly interested in the race itself.

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Methodology: Total sample size was 1,044 adults. Fieldwork was undertaken between 6th - 10th October 2021. The survey was carried out online. The figures have been weighted and are representative of all Australian adults (aged 18+).