With solid Breeders’ Cup results and more days of live racing, total wagering handle on U.S. races grew slightly in November versus the same month last year. That still leaves handle for the year lagging 2023 by about 2.5%, however.

In all, the total handle on US races was a shade over $921 million in November. That was nearly $11 million, or 1.2%, above the November 2023 figure. For the year to date, though, the handle of almost $10.6 billion through 11 months is below the more than $10.8 billion wagered in the first 11 months of 2023.

Handle on US racing topped $15 billion for three consecutive years, 2002-2004. It has fallen most years since, and assuming current trends hold, 2024 will mark the third consecutive year of declines and the fifth in the last six years.

Breeders’ Cup announced Nov. 2 that handle on its two-day championship meet had increased by 1.7%, or nearly $3 million, versus 2023. The mini-meet handled nearly $180 million, just below 20% of nationwide handle for the month, and accounted for more than a quarter of the national increase.

Another key factor was growth in race days and races. American tracks carded 275 live days during the month of November, hosting 2,316 races in the process. Those numbers were 4.6% and 2.1% above their 2023 counterparts, respectively.

As a result average wagering per race day actually declined. The average race day handled about $3.3 million this November, more than 3% below the 2023 number of close to $3.5 million.

For the year, the decline in total handle thus far has been almost entirely due to fewer races and race days. Both numbers are off more than 2% versus 2023, and as a result, though total handle is down, wagering per race day is essentially flat at almost $3 million.

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