"Our plans are to expand the number of tracks and races offered to the US market"

Can you tell us about the niche of providing wagering on Australasian horse races to bettors in the US market?

Based in Louisville, Kentucky, Sky Racing World is the US-focused subsidiary of the Sky Racing brand, which is owned by Tabcorp. The company is a world leader in multi-venue, multi-channel race broadcasting and telecasts more than 80,000 races each year to millions of viewers in Australia and around the globe.

Since we were founded in March 2014, Sky Racing World has been distributing Australian, New Zealand and also South African racing to the North American market to satisfy the growing demand for this content in the United States especially. In North America as a whole this year, over $200 million will be wagered on Australian racing. And this is growing at a rate of around 10% per year.

The reason Americans are interested in the horse-racing content we distribute is because it’s high-quality thoroughbred racing. In addition, these races are offered seven nights a week and 363 days per year. Finally, as the Australasian races air in the US night-time, it means that American bettors can bet on them without it interfering with their wagering on domestic races in the day.

Where and how can American bettors wager on these sort of international horse-races?  

Sky Racing World provides live video streaming on races in Australia, New Zealand and South Africa to more than 70 US-facing advance deposit wagering (ADW) brands. We also offer simulcasting to 425 retail outlets in the US, Canada, Mexico and the Caribbean.

American bettors can wager on these internationals races through our major ADW partners such as TVG, TwinSpires, Xpressbet, BetAmerica, MyWinners and most recently NYRA Rewards, the ADW brand of the New York Racing Association.

What are the advantages for both US-focused operators and the American bettors themselves of wagering on international horse-races?

As online wagering on horse-races in the US continues to grow, ADW operators are more and more focused on engaging with bettors on a 24-7 basis – all hours of the day and even night. The time difference between the US and Australia results in Australian horse-racing filling a night-time niche. This type of racing content provides bettors with quality wagering opportunities from around 9 p.m. to 3 a.m. EST and even earlier for bettors on the US West Coast.

As well, these are high quality races run on large fields. For example, the average field size in Australia is 11, compared to eight in the US. Of course, bigger fields drive bigger payouts for players.

Looking ahead, what are the major upcoming international races that American punters and the wider industry will be focusing on?  

The biggest event on the horizon is next week’s Melbourne Cup. This is the premier event on the Australian racing calendar and also one of the top-five thoroughbred races globally. It’s always held on the first Tuesday in November and is known in Australia and worldwide as “the race that stops the nation”.

This year, Tuesday November 3rd, 2015, will be the 155th running of the Melbourne Cup and attendance at the Flemington Racecourse where it’s held is expected to be around 120,000. For Americans, the race comes on at 11 p.m. EST or 8 p.m. PST on Monday November 2nd. All partner ADWs we work with at Sky Racing World will offer a live video stream of the event and it will also be broadcast on TVG, NYRA network, as well as at all tracks and OTBs that are open for the event.

As Australia’s richest race, prize money is $6.2 million AUD and $3.6 million AUD goes to the winner. Wagering on the race in Australia hit around $100 million AUD last year, and as much as $1 million US in North America. Considering the race comes in on a Monday, which tends to be the lowest wagering day of the week in the US and Canadian markets, this is an impressive amount.

Other exciting upcoming horse-racing events in Australasia and South Africa include New Zealand Cup Week from November 7th to November 15th , the J&B Met on January 30th, 2016, in Cape Town, and the Sydney Autumn Racing Carnival next March and April.

What are Sky Racing World’s plans as a company for the rest of 2015 and into 2016?

Our plans for the rest of 2015 and into 2016 are to expand the number of tracks and races offered to the US market and to continue to engage more with ADW operators. In the future we’re also focused on offering harness racing as well. Our goal remains to continually elevate the awareness and excitement around these international races in the American market.