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Cape Town will dress up for one of South Africa’s signature race days this weekend, but the sport behind the spectacle is under real pressure.
The World Sports Betting Cape Town Met runs on Saturday, 31 January at Hollywoodbets Kenilworth, a marquee meet that still delivers prestige and big-event energy. But away from the fashion and the hospitality tents, racing’s share of the national betting market has shrunk to a sliver, and industry leaders say the old business model isn’t keeping up with how South Africans wager in 2026.
Horse racing has become a rounding error in South Africa’s gambling economy
National Gambling Board figures show just how dramatically the market has expanded. Total gambling turnover was about 100 billion rand in 2002 and had climbed to around 1.5 trillion rand by the end of March 2025.
The problem for racing is that it hasn’t grown with the rest of the industry. Vee Moodley, CEO of the National Horseracing Authority (NHA), told reports that horse racing sits at roughly 11 billion rand in revenue a year, less than 1% of the total gambling market. Inside that, the tote contributes a little over 1.7 billion rand, and Moodley said the tote-led model is no longer sustainable.
He also bluntly pointed out that one reason the sport has kept going so far is that it’s being kept afloat by sponsors. Moodley named Hollywoodbets and the Oppenheimer family as key backers, saying that support is what keeps racing alive right now.
Why younger bettors are drifting away from racing
Moodley’s view is that racing has a product problem with younger audiences. Online sports betting and other modern formats offer quick, frequent wagering, while racing asks punters to slow down, study form, and understand a more complex market. “Instant gratification” is pulling the next generation toward products where bets can be placed every few seconds, he said, an environment that feels closer to constant trading than a once-off flutter.
His warning is that racing can’t simply “simplify” itself to compete. The sport needs new ways to win attention rather than trying to mimic faster betting products that already dominate phone screens.
A bright spot: South African racing still sells internationally
Moodley argued South Africa still produces racing product that travels well: strong breeding, respected standards, and international broadcasts. He said the exchange rate allows South Africa to produce a foal at about a twentieth of the cost elsewhere, giving the country a real advantage on the supply side.
This weekend’s Met provides a concrete example of that international demand. The Hong Kong Jockey Club will host betting pools on the meeting under an agreement involving Race Coast WC and the NHA, and Moodley estimated turnover in Hong Kong alone could reach 300 million to 400 million rand on South African racing.
Source: Reuters
