How do young people feel about racing and betting? The results might surprise you

Some of the most striking data to come out of the Big Punting Survey surrounds the number of people who say their betting on racing has either declined in the last six months, or that they expect it to reduce in the next six months.

But the youngest age group represented in our survey, those between 18 and 25, have very different expectations and experiences when it comes to their enthusiasm for betting on racing, while they also differ from some of the older respondents to the survey in a number of other key areas. 

• Jumps or Flat? Our survey reveals a clear winner in punters' affections 

When asked whether their betting had decreased either marginally or greatly, 14.4 per cent agreed, against almost 30 per cent of all survey respondents.

But a much larger slice of the youngest group report their betting on racing has actually increased either by a little or significantly in the last six months, with a whopping 44 per cent upping their interest compared to a headline figure across the survey of just eight per cent. Those aged between 26 and 34 were the only other group from which more than ten per cent reported increased betting activity.

What also comes through is that there is no similar youthful uplift in betting on other sports, suggesting that among what is admittedly still quite a small constituency at this stage – under 35s make up fewer than seven per cent of all those who took the survey – there is plenty of enthusiasm about what racing has to offer as a betting medium. 

One explanation for this is what might be termed the exuberance of youth; this is the part of the racing fanbase which is newest to the sport, with at least some enjoying newly disposable income. 

But the time of year may also play a role, since the 18-25 group also displays by far the biggest bias towards jump racing over the action on the Flat. 

In that tribe, 44 per cent bet mostly on jump racing – the code to which another 7.5 per cent confine their gambling exclusively – meaning that more than half of all young bettors show a marked preference for Cheltenham and Aintree over Epsom and Ascot. 

The percentage of the 18-25 year-olds that expect to spend more on betting in the next six months still outstrips other age groups quite comfortably at 25 per cent, but it doesn’t come close to matching the 44 per cent who have upped their interest in the last six months. 

Thousands of young people in Britain and Ireland have enjoyed a day at the races organised by the team at Invades, which aims to combine the live sporting experience with DJ sets and socialising. 

Invades founder Dom Matcham said: "We do three tours with back-to-back weekends which match up with the university terms, and two of those fall in the core jumps season. And from a spectator perspective, jump racing provides more opportunities for the crowd to get involved. 

"The summer is a bit more challenging because different courses and universities have different academic schedules." 

While Invades has steered clear of any official partnerships with bookmakers or gambling apps, betting is clearly a big part of the experience in between the music acts.

"Our audience is 18 to 25 and ultimately they will bet through their phones or on course, although we’re more a lifestyle brand and it’s hard to actively promote gambling to that age group," says Matcham. "We know people will bet and we want them to because it gives them an emotional and financial investment in the outcome."

Sam Juckes, 20, is a familiar voice on both William Hill Radio and as a commentator on the pony racing circuit, commitments which he is able to combine with a full-time university course in journalism. 

"I’ve grown up in a jumping and pointing family and my betting would be majority jumps, mostly because I think I have a better idea of it," says Juckes. "I’ve got friends who are not involved in the sport or who don’t follow it closely, but who will message me around the Cheltenham Festival or the Aintree Grand National meeting, whereas they wouldn’t get in touch in the first week in June ahead of the Derby."

When you drill down into the type of betting the youngest group enjoys there is an element of going against the grain, with some evidence that certain types of bets which have been the mainstay of leisure punters for decades hold less attraction.  

Britain and Ireland have long stood out for their love of what the betting industry refers to as vertical wagering, with the Lucky 15, Yankee and Patent all mainstays which link selections in several races together to boost the potential returns. 

Our youngest punters seem much less engaged – accumulators excepted – with half as many in this age bracket saying they place a Lucky 15 frequently or exclusively when compared to 55-64-year-olds, where the rate is around a quarter of respondents. 

Other forms of multiples have gained even less traction, with fewer than ten per cent among the youngest punters in our survey using these types of bet with any regularity. 

Nor is Tote betting a passion, with 18-25-year-olds sticking to win and each-way singles at a much more consistent rate than any other age group. 

One other way the newest bettors in our survey seem to be bucking existing trends is that they are the most prepared to take a long-term view, with more than one in five betting ante-post frequently, against ten per cent across all age groups. 

"My own betting would be mostly in running and singles," says Juckes. "I have seen through friends a lot of interest in ante-post multiples, and I get messages from friends from well before the DRF, as far back as Christmas, telling me about their ante-post four- and five-folds.

"There are reappearing names at the festival and with friends whose interest isn’t as strong, they still remember those horses." 

YouTube shows such as the Racing Post's own 'Upping the Ante' place more emphasis than ever before on the evolving Cheltenham Festival picture through the season, with Juckes admitting to voracious consumption of such content.

Also well above the headline figure, 16 per cent of 26-34-year-olds describe their striking of ante-post racing bets as frequent, begging the question whether rumours of its demise may have been exaggerated.

The Big Punting Survey

Racing's crisis: 1 in 3 high-rollers turn to black market amid rising frustration for punters unable to bet with legal bookies 

We asked 10,000 punters about affordability checks and the black market. What you told us is alarming 

Betting account restrictions on the rise as two in five report being limited 

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