Why is horse racing considered a sport when it’s just a front for gambling? March 9th, 2010
Real sports like football, rugby and cricket don’t rely on gambling money so why not just admit that horse racing isn’t a real sport?
And you don’t think that people gamble on other sports? Get real.
I don’t care what you think about horse racing. It is a wonderful sport. Horses are beautiful animals and they run their hearts out on the racetrack because they want to prove that they’re the best horse on the track. Certainly the racetracks need the gambling money in order to keep the purses at a respectable price. And gambling brings more people into the sport because they get to put their money where their mouth is. But are you really trying to say that because there’s gambling, horse racing can’t be called a real sport?
But of course I understand why you categorize horse racing as not a real sport…after all, the beauty and grace of a thoroughbred on the racetrack certainly can’t compare to a bunch of guys beating each other up in your "real" sports.
The Murphyologist
March 9th, 2010 at 2:35 pm
Same reason that they put poker on ESPN. Personally, I think the same thing about NASCAR…except the gambling part, of course.
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Amiryah
March 9th, 2010 at 2:45 pm
IDK…I do know I don’t like horse racing I agree it’s not really a sport because the horses do all the work the gamblers and riders should get out there and race then it’d be a sport n I’d like it =)
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kmnmiamisax
March 9th, 2010 at 3:15 pm
And you don’t think that people gamble on other sports? Get real.
I don’t care what you think about horse racing. It is a wonderful sport. Horses are beautiful animals and they run their hearts out on the racetrack because they want to prove that they’re the best horse on the track. Certainly the racetracks need the gambling money in order to keep the purses at a respectable price. And gambling brings more people into the sport because they get to put their money where their mouth is. But are you really trying to say that because there’s gambling, horse racing can’t be called a real sport?
But of course I understand why you categorize horse racing as not a real sport…after all, the beauty and grace of a thoroughbred on the racetrack certainly can’t compare to a bunch of guys beating each other up in your "real" sports.
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Sandra S.
March 9th, 2010 at 4:03 pm
Money makes the world go around and Cricket is a year-round sport with a myriad of betting opportunities around the world too, also, Rugby Leagues offers a wealth of great betting opportunities. Any game typically played for money can also be played just for fun too, and vice versa. In the 1800s, horse racing was the sport of choice among gamblers, with boxing also popular, but as the popularity of baseball increased in the later part of the century, so did baseball betting, and the popularity of wagering on the sport was brought to the forefront during the 1919 World Series, which will live on in infamy as the Black Sox Scandal.
College sports, such as football and basketball, began to catch the public eye in the early stages of the 20th century, and over time, those two sports soon rivaled baseball as popular betting activities. For a number of years, football and basketball bets were placed using odds, a practice that still takes place today.
Horse racing is the second-most attended spectator sport in the United States, outranked only by baseball.
Horse racing is an equestrian sport that has been practiced over the centuries, the chariot races of Roman times are an early example, as is the contest of the steeds of the god Odin and the giant Hrungnir in Norse mythology. It is inextricably associated with gambling. The common sobriquet for Thoroughbred horse racing is The Sport of Kings.
There’s gambling in every sport. Betting on team sports has become an important service industry in many countries. For example, millions play the football pools every week. In addition to organized sports betting, both legal and illegal, there are many side-betting games played by casual groups of spectators, such as NCAA Basketball Tournament Bracket Pools, Super Bowl Squares, and, also, Fantasy Sports Leagues have monetary entry fees and winnings, and in-person spectator games.
Also, keep in mind, before the horse racing track pays off the winners they deduct the "take" which is different for every state. This money goes to pay state and local taxes, purse money for the horsemen, expenses at the track, and the track’s profit. Horse racing profits many, gambling money is used for many positive things. Life is filled with many positive things if we choose to look at life with optimism.
To each his own.
One has a right to one’s personal (sport) preferences.
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Opinion along with Internet lifted supported facts
engyman
March 9th, 2010 at 4:48 pm
the horses are great athletes and the jockeys are perhaps the most underated athlete. they have to be extemely fit and strong. also very sharp at making split second decisions. its also a game where the fan can enjoy the pageantry( i can’t believe is used this word), and also get envolved with probability and statistics if there in to that. if you went to one of the nicer tracks and watched it up close i’m convinced you would enjoy it.
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mysilv
March 9th, 2010 at 5:17 pm
Horse racing is more than just a sport in the UK it is a tradition dating back to 1711 when spectators began placing bets on a couple of matched horses racing across fields.
Thanks mainly to our dear Queen Anne It went on to become a professional sport and she founded Ascot racecourse in 1711 the first of its kind in England.
Of course people will want to have a flutter on the horses, just as they do the football pools or bet on final scores of football, cricket and rugby matches, along with tennis, darts etc….but the difference is that you aren’t squashed cheek to jowl in a stadium, being conned into purchasing the latest strip by the football or rugby team that you have spent a lifetime supporting, and paying a small fortune for season tickets.
Gamblers don’t have to go horse racing they can stay at home betting on the Bookmakers Internet sites and laying horses to lose races, they bet on virtual horse racing, virtual greyhounds, bingo, poker the list is endless. Isn’t gambling a sport in its own right?
When you go to the races you actually have the opportunity to see some of the best thoroughbred horses competing against each other in a sport that they love ridden by dedicated jockeys and trained and cared for by professional sporting people who are not in the habit of throwing their toys out of the pram every time they lose or injure themselves, and yes if you do happen to throw some of your hard earned cash at the bookmakers, and you know a little about horses and the sport of horse racing, you have a very good chance of leaving the races with more than you came in with , which one of your so called ‘real sports’ can offer that?
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Hawkeye Pierce
March 9th, 2010 at 6:01 pm
You can bet on all sports. I’m not a gambler myself, but I do enjoy a big horse race. The Melbourne Cup for example.
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Girt by Sea
March 9th, 2010 at 6:43 pm
You can bet on any sports these days (so why single out on Racehorses?)
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horsepro001
March 9th, 2010 at 6:53 pm
The competition between the horses is as legitimate of a sport as any. Each runner is as much an athlete as any and so are the incredibly brave jockeys who ride them. Parking and admission fees, as well as percentages of the gross receipts from concession stands do not provide nearly enough operating capital for race tracks. State governments, let alone the federal government, do not subsidize horse racing unlike other industries. Race tracks have been left with no other option than to offer parimutuel wagering on their races. There are gamblers who partake in this parimutuel wagering and there are professional handicappers who make their living from it, and usually quite a nice one.
I am a former professional commodities trader. I bring this up only to attest to the fact that horse racing is probably the purest "market" of all that one could ever invest in. This is only so because of the incredibly graceful and beautiful athletes that make up this sport. Thoroughbred racehorses are more honest and pure in performance than you could ever hope to find in any other "market" of financial opportunity. I thank God every day there is a means by which I can apply myself and face unlimited reward potential while not having to concern myself with surreptitious skulduggery constantly going on behind the scenes.
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Secondz Away
March 9th, 2010 at 7:10 pm
"horse racing isn’t a real sport?"
wow……congrats on winning Tool of the day award.
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Moodygirl
March 9th, 2010 at 7:18 pm
It is a sport because the jockey and horse are both tremendous athletes who are competing with each other, to win, to be the best.
EVERY sport has bettors. Horse race betting is just legal and controlled. Some of the money made betting (Losing to the track) actually goes to the purses for the winning horses. This betting actually supports the sport. Betting in other sports like football only benefits the bookies & their bosses, not the sport!
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bloodhorse.com, the news
Shaman Val
March 9th, 2010 at 7:56 pm
All games are a gamble. Loads of people bet on all sorts of things. I think its stupid myself but lots of people earn a living from the equine industry on the back of it. All things have their good and bad points.
Practicing Shaman… quantum physics rocks
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horseracebase
March 9th, 2010 at 8:04 pm
Id say a more appropriate challenge would be to the likes of snooker or darts where a 40 smokes 10 pints and a fry up a day person can still challenge.
Horse Racing is considered a sport because it meets all aspects of the word itself! (definition 1 in the dictionary - game, activity for pleasure, competion and exercise)
Not sure if you were just on the wind up, but felt id offer an answer!
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betotron
March 9th, 2010 at 8:51 pm
thoroughbreds are meant to race
its in their genes
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my horse is better than your horse
lets race
thats what its all about
robert C
March 9th, 2010 at 9:15 pm
of course all those sports you have mentioned are on the betting sports bars.
the most popular form of betting is a multiple bet where you can choose a horse,+ rugby, +football+ gridiron to win ,all on the one ticket, it’s better than lotto
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